Gilbert & Gaillard magazine by Vinipresse

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GILBERT & GAILLARD NEXT ISSUE OUT SUMMER 2012

74-76

GILBERT & GAILLARD

LIVE FROM SPAIN • A great Spanish gentleman's vineyard

THE WORLDWIDE WINE SIGNATURE

SUBSCRIPTIONS 2 YEARS 43.90 € - 1 YEAR 23.60 € SEE PAGE 105

84-85 SAN FRANCISCO LIFE

• Nopa: A San Francisco Gathering Place

92-95 FAMILY BUSINESS • Miguel Torres: From Spain to the world

108

102-104 WINE AND FOOD • La Côte Saint Jacques… A family affair, from Marie to Jean-Michel

106-107 WINE QUOTATIONS • The magic of Saint-Emilion

84 11

50-51

LONDON LIFE

ORGANIC NEWS

108-110 STARS AND WINE • Katherine Heigl and Dustin Hoffman

• Gilles Louvet: the inventor of

13-18 NEWS

organic wine shipping

112-114 RECOMMENDED WINES GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

CONTENTS

Contents REPORTS

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52-57 REGION • The Place de Bordeaux: Bordeaux’s wine trade under scrutiny

58-65 QUALITY FACTORS • Chardonnay in Blanc de Blancs Champagne: a diamond of C’s

66-70 REGION • Miraculous Rioja wines

72-73 QUALITY FACTORS • Tempranillo: undisputed queen of the Spanish viticultural landscape

52 19-49

86-91 TRAVEL • The surprising wine country of North Carolina

COVER STORY

96-101

• Hidden excellence:

WINE GROWER PORTRAITS • Cape harvest of Good Hope

Italy's top white wines • Amazing Spanish whites in a red country • White wines score top marks for diversity

96 4

GILBERT & GAILLARD

• Rated wines 90/100 and more • Rated wines 86-89/100

SPRING 2012

THIS MAGAZINE IS PRINTED ON RECYCLABLE PAPER

Don't miss out!

2012 NEW FRENCH EDITION ● 974 PAGES ● 7,000 WINES PRESENTED ● 750 ORGANIC WINES ● 280 BORDEAUX VINTAGE 2010 ● NEW! 300 GREAT ITALIAN WINES

e are delighted to present the 2012 Gilbert & Gaillard Guide des Vins. All the wines featured have been tasted using the same protocol, ensuring a rigorous, impartial selection. The samples sent by producers are blind

tasted by Gilbert & Gaillard and their team in the quiet seclusion of a tasting room. A 100 point scale is employed for utmost accuracy. There is no question of marathon tastings as no more than 10-15 samples are tasted per session to maintain fair judgement and analysis. 7,000 wines have been selected, along with commentaries, tasting notes and recommendations on how to serve them. All the classed growths and most prestigious wines are featured, but there are also many smaller, lesser-known wine growers to discover too. Each wine growing region is represented, together with a detailed map and every appellation is closely analysed, with commentaries. The Gilbert & Gaillard Guide des Vins is the essential guide to discovering european wines.

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taly is a leading wine producer both in volume and

quality terms. Italy’s wine regions are renowned across the globe due to a highly successful and long-standing export strategy. The greatest beneficiaries of this strategy, though, are Italy’s red wines: Barolo, Barbera, Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino… In this issue, we have decided to turn the spotlight on its outstanding white wines

Italy looks great in white

which demonstrate just how varied and comprehensive its wine regions are. Our report features some exciting new finds including wines from Veneto (Soave Classico DOC), Friuli (Colli Orientali DOC, Isonzo DOC, Collio e Carso DOC), Campania (Greco di Tufo DOCG, Fiano di Avellino DOCG) and even some incredible whites from the Piedmont (Gavi del Gavi DOCG). These regions and appellations belong to “consortiums” and are extremely successful in their domestic market. They are also starting to play a more significant part in Italian exports. Above all though, most of them use extremely idiosyncratic native grape varieties, thereby going completely against the tide of globalisation that has spread throughout the wine industry over the last twenty years. What better reason therefore to introduce them to you - apart from, that is, their impeccable quality which will before long turn them into formidable competitors in the global marketplace.

François Gilbert Editorial director GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Don't miss out!

FIRST EDITION ● 482 pages ● 2 350 wines presented ● 300 Bordeaux vintage 2010 ● ● Exhaustive presentation of the French appellations (AOCs) ● PUBLICATION DATE: January 2012

‘’This is the first wine guide in Chinese published by

renowned French wine tasters. All the wines are tasted before being selected and must score a minimum of 75/100.’’ ‘’ They all feature a detailed tasting commentary as well as serving advice and food pairing recommendations.’’ ‘’The essential guide for discovering French and European wines!’’

✂ SUBSCRIPTION ORDER FORM (may be photocopied) to be completed and returned to Gilbert & Gaillard International - 7, Parc des Fontenelles - 78870 Bailly - France - Fax +33 (0)1 30 80 08 88 Name: ................................................First name:..........................................Company

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Payment to the order of GILBERT & GAILLARD INTERNATIONAL by: ❑ I subscribe for 1 Gilbert & Gaillard Wine Guide Chinese version 25,00* € ❑ I subscribe for ....... Gilbert & Gaillard Wine Guide Chinese version ........ * € * Including tax + shipping costs: 3.00 €

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PHILIPPE GAILLARD

www.gilbertgaillard.com

odern-day conquistadores may not have swords or armour but they are once again bound for America, this time laden with bottles and determined to convert New World populations over to their wines. And it’s working!

Spain is conquering the New World for the second time around

Spanish wine exports totalled 1.92 billion euros in 2010, up 10 % on 2009. The previous fiscal year was also successful with wine exports again beating all-time world records, both in volume and value terms. Spanish sales abroad thus posted 15.6 % increases by volume and value… In value terms, the three leading markets were Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States. Although obviously the economic crisis has undermined performance in the industry, especially for domestic consumption, in sales terms Spain outstripped countries such as Italy and France for the second year running. The surge is particularly noticeable in the American market. The case of Rias Baixas appellation wine exports which rose from 529,000 litres in 2004 to 1.9 million in 2010 (+259 %) speaks volumes about Spain’s overall performance. In conjunction with the appellation, the Galicia Institute for Economic Promotion (IGAPE) and the Spanish Foreign Trade Institute (ICEX) have planned to roll out a promotional campaign until 2013 at a total cost of 1.7 million euros. The primary aim of the thrust is to spark loyalty by engaging with American consumers. Perhaps the Kingdom of Spain’s economic salvation involves rallying this newly-styled army that is determined to conquer the New World once and for all. Source: ICEX

Philippe Gaillard Editorial director GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

SYLVAIN PATARD

www.gilbertgaillard.com

Organic wine that’s now really organic!

huge step forward has been made with the advent of truly organic wine, though we will have to wait until August 1, 2012 for its official arrival within the European community. Until now, only the grapes were organic with organic procedures stopping at the cellar door. Henceforth, the wine making process is included and therefore the wine made from these grapes becomes genuinely organic. The new regulations are the outcome of a European consensus involving the main producer countries (Germany, Austria, Spain, France, Italy…). They have two main virtues: firstly they apply to all European producer countries in the same way, placing them on an equal footing. Secondly, they feature an exhaustive list of authorised products and procedures (filtration, reverse osmosis…) thereby excluding any other procedure at least until the text is probably reviewed in a few years’ time. A few issues are obviously questionable such as the potential use of oak chips (should they be organic chips?) and exogenous yeasts (that are not already in the grape must and are added) that produce very specific aromas with only a tenuous link to the local terroir. Complaints have already been voiced over this, pointing to the complacency of the regulations and promising to create much more drastic standards. The most positive aspect though is improved communication. Until now, it has been a nightmare for growers to have to explain to consumers that the grapes were organic, but not the wine! The “organic wine” statement on labels will unquestionably clarify the issue and probably spark even greater consumer interest for wines that already boast a highly positive image.

Sylvain Patard Editor in chief

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

LONDON LIFE

A Spanish revolution

Spanish food and wine have enjoyed a real renaissance in London over the past decade, demonstrated by an ever-growing list of superb restaurants (Moro, Angels & Gypsies, El Parador and Providores are all excellent, in addition to those below) and a surge in quality (and availability) of the country’s wines. With a recent high profile UK TV series about the cuisine of Spain and a raft of new openings in the capital, I was inspired to investigate further.

series of incredible Sherry and tapas bars, with amazing food, a wonderful wine list Mark Andrew

and an atmosphere to match. Why don’t we have anything like that in the UK? Well, increasingly we do and José might just be

Anyone that has been to Jerez will have a story about a wonderful night spent in a

place is situated on one of the most vibrant streets in London and after arriving early evening and grabbing a seat at the bar, the ambience, if not the weather outside, could have tricked me into believing that I was in Spain. The small but well-chosen wine list was put together by Tim Atkin MW and Jo Ahearne MW and I was delighted to see they had selected the Hidalgo La Gitana ©ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

104 Bermondsey Street London SE1 3UB Tel. +44 (0)207 403 4902 www.joserestaurant.co.uk

the most authentic of them all. This tiny

José

ONE STREET, TWO GREAT VENUES José

José

Manzanilla (£5.50 per glass). Perfect alongside some olives and jamon. The food is expertly prepared, keenly priced and unashamedly of tapas proportions after all, that is the raison d’être of the place. I thoroughly enjoyed my albongidas (meatballs) and patatas bravas with a glass of Decenio Rioja (£7 per glass), and by the time I was finished the place was packed and buzzing, just like a great tapas bar should be.

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SPRING 2012

LONDON LIFE

ONE STREET, TWO GREAT VENUES Pizarro 194 Bermondsey Street London SE1 3TQ Tel. +44 (0)207 407 7339 www.pizarrorestaurant.com

The eponymous José of the bar above is also the eponymous Pizarro of this great restaurant a little further down the street. José Pizarro has impeccable credentials (including 1* Michelin Meson de Doña Filo in Madrid and London’s Spanish icon, Brindisa), and a few weeks after I visited his tapas bar, I enjoyed dinner at his attractively designed restaurant. There is more of an emphasis on food at Pizarro and the results are excellent. My prawns with cecina (a delicious cured beef) was a great start and bettered only by the crispy quail in Romesca sauce and creamy salt cod. Spanish classics made with top quality ingredients and washed down with a bottle of Terrer d’Aubert Cabernet Sauvignon from Tarragon (a bargain at £46). Pizarro is lively and the food is delicious. Let’s hope José takes over the whole street!

Pizarro

PREMIUM TAPAS EXPERIENCE Fino

There are a handful of Spanish restaurants in London that have been responsible for changing the perception of Spanish cuisine over the past few years and Fino is definitely one of these, a sleek and chic venue on Charlotte Street in Fitzrovia. The team here are also behind the more casual Barrafina in Soho (a great place for a drink and some tapas), but Fino is more impressive in every way.

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SPRING 2012

33 Charlotte Street London W1T 1RR Tel. +44 (0)207 813 8010 www.finorestaurant.com

I find it difficult to be in the same building as jamon and not devour some, so we started with a platter of delicious charcuterie that matched perfectly with a salty glass of Fino from Valdespino (£6.50). Seafood is a key part of any Spanish meal and we ordered some octopus, king prawns and arroz negro (rice with squid ink) to go with a bottle of the incredible 1991 Lopez de Heredia Rioja Blanco Reserva (an absolute bargain at £62). Rump of lamb and pork belly followed, with a glass of an elegant and fruity Garnacha from Castillian winery Navaherreros (£7.20 per glass). Despite the handsome prices, Fino is impressive in every way.

Fino

Pizarro

NEWS

2011 - A GREAT VINTAGE FOR COGNAC The world’s leading brandy confirmed it was in fine fettle in 2011 with significant sales growth of 6.4% on the previous year, thereby breaking volume and value records. More than five bottles of Cognac are sold every second worldwide. In 2011, shipments beat the previous annual record, rising to 455,958 hectolitres of pure alcohol and 162.9 million bottles. Turnover is in excess of 2 billion euros due to the fact that the volume increase was coupled with an upward surge in quality (XO: +15.3% and VSOP: +7.9% in a year) which produced a substantial rise in turnover. Sales are divided evenly across the three main geographical regions. The Far East, which accounts for 35.8% of the global market by volume (+14.4% in a year) and buys primarily higher quality Cognac, consolidated its leading global position by volume and value. The Chinese market was particularly bullish again with a 20.1% increase over the year to 22.6 million bottles. The United States remains the world’s leading importer, with 48.4 million bottles. Europe accounts for 28.8% of the world market with no change on the previous year. BNIC website: www.cognac.fr

MEET NICOLAS: 190 YEARS OLD AND STILL AS YOUNG AS EVER Nicolas' story begins aeons ago when wine was drunk in cabaret clubs. Drinking at home meant buying a whole barrel because wines were not sold in bottles. In 1822, the founder of Nicolas dreamt up a whole new concept: he would sell his

AP ALSACE 75X285.PDF

wines in bottles, and thus the Nicolas wine stores were born. Three specialist wine and spirits stores opened in Paris; by 1870 there were 30, in 1919 there were 138, and by the brand’s centenary in 1922, there were 180. Created by Dransy (the pen name of illustrator Jules

Nectar, the 24-bottle delivery man

Isnard), Nectar became extremely popular and a very

successful publicity stunt. Thanks to Etienne Nicolas, who took over the helm of the family firm and who had an acute flair for publicity, Nectar’s adventures ran for many years and took the 24-bottle delivery man across the world. The results were impressive and his son Pierre Nicolas was to capitalise on them until 1973. Fifty years of artistic creation form a bond between the Nicolas stores - which have belonged to the Castel group since 1988 - and the world of art. Today, Nicolas boasts 549 shops throughout Europe with a turnover of 350 million euros. The brand has revealed a new, more minimalist appearance that is firmly focused on the future and on modernity. One might even say that Nicolas has been rejuvenated. www.nicolas.com

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

NEWS

Bordeaux 2011: weather report The vintage came on the heels of hot year with temperatures above the 30-year average for eight

In every issue, 4 winemakers are the gold medal winners

months and an overall shortfall in rain, except for the months of July and August. Sunshine hours were

Étienne BOIVIN Franchise Development Manager

long (April being the hottest month since records began in 1920), particularly in September

Spring 2012

and October. This promoted the

La Chablisienne Chablis La Sereine 2008

latest stages of ripening for the fruit

although

temperatures

remained moderate.

Chablis A.C.

Conditions were favourable and

Mr LAFOY CAVAVIN CHEVIGNY ST SAUVEUR

12.70 €*

gave acidity and aromatic maturity to the dry whites. The Merlot

33, avenue de la République 21800 CHEVIGNY ST SAUVEUR

( +33 (0)3 80 56 63 14

Mas Bruguière La Grenadière 2008

August, becoming more widespread in mid-September, as for the Cabernet Franc. Traditionally later-ripening varietal Cabernet-Sauvignon enjoyed fine weather in September, allowing it to fully

Languedoc Pic Saint-Loup A.C.

Mr GOURLANDT CAVAVIN LAON 54, rue Eugène Leduc 02000 LAON ( +33 (0)9 82 40 23 03

harvest began at the end of

ripen. The sweet whites were fairly early and September ensured ideal conditions for the spread of botrytis. Obviously, all this remains to be confirmed by tasting, so watch this space! Find out all you need to know about 2011 Bordeaux in our June issue. 17.70 €*

Château Viella Prestige 2008

Erratum • One of the prices in our Champagne ranking in December 2011’s issue 7 was wrongly quoted. Champagne Henriot Brut Rosé (page 30) obviously does not cost 5€ but 37€.

Madiran A.C.

• We also omitted to mention the title of a wine in our Best Wines of the Year rating in issue 6, pub-

17.90 €*

Mr GEBLEUX CAVAVIN CHANTILLY 3, Place Omer Vallon 60500 CHANTILLY ( +33 (0)3 44 58 18 62

lished autumn 2011. On page 36, the Vin de Pays des Coteaux de Murviel scoring 94/100 is the Ravanès Le Renard blanc Oméga 2005 by Domaine de Ravanès. • Chinese edition of the 2012 Wine Guide • We unfortunately forgot to mention the Clos Saint-Pierre - Urbi 2009 in the Châteauneuf-du-Pape appellation wines selected in this edition. Our apologies to the wine’s owners. Here is our commentary for the wine in English and Chinese:

Château de Rhodes Gaillac doux 2005

93/100 Clos Saint-Pierre - Urbi 2009 Deeply-coloured. Endearing focused nose showing a seductive fruity character underscored by subtle mineral and spice notes. Full palate with nicely harnessed power and focused aromas. Good length.

Gaillac doux A.C. Mr LAVILLE CAVAVIN ALBI 2, rue Émile Grand 81000 ALBI ( +33 (0)5 81 02 40 45

Very harmonious across the palate. Score: 93/100 Clos Saint Pierre - Urbi 2009 强烈的色彩。酒香纯净，含有微妙诱人的果味、辛香料和矿物质香味。口感饱满平衡、质地细腻、芳香清新，酒体非常和谐。 6.60 €*

* Retail price including sales tax

GILBERT & GAILLARD

Our apologies to these companies and to our readers.

SPRING 2012

NEWS

Old vintages in Lunel: Burgundy comes out tops

Languedoc has been suffering from a drought for the past few months and yet on February 19th it rained in Lunel. Find that hard to believe? Well, I’m absolutely certainly of it. It rained a collection of venerable bottles over our table at the excellent restaurant L’Anguille sous Cloche in the town centre. Here’s my fly on the wall account of what happened next. Continued on page 16

Canet Valette) and one of his employees, Véronique Cesbron, and myself were present. Restaurant owner Emmanuel Brunel and his chef David Grelier had prepared us a menu reflecting the simplicity and taste of these mature wines: large cupped oysters topped with heart sweetbread in a sweet potato sauce for starter, followed by very simple yet delicious wild boar chops with mashed potatoes and home made preserve.

hilippe Roux, who writes the Wine Quotations column in this magazine, had the great idea of inviting us to this extremely friendly setting, and he kindly brought along a few outstanding bottles (see the list in the box). Philippe Gaillard, François Gilbert, Marc Valette (Domaine

The evening got off to a wonderful start with two white Burgundies that were open yet also boasting the kind of acidity that had allowed them to age effortlessly. Next came two reds in marvellous condition; the 1929 Gevrey-Chambertin Village seemed the livelier of the two with outstanding fullness and aromatic quality.

THE EVENING GOT OFF TO A WONDERFUL START WITH TWO WHITE BURGUNDIES

Paradoxically, the Bordeaux wines were the most disappointing even though the 1955 Pavie did impress for a moment before flowing into quite odd fragrances of geranium, toffee and mint. The most disappointing wines were the 1961 Ducru-Beaucaillou, a great 20th century vintage that was extremely tired; the 1929 Pichon Comtesse that had given up the ghost; and finally, the 1918 Léoville Las-Cases that had also fallen by the wayside. A 1935 Clos des Papes struggled to inspire us as we had suspected from the level in the bottle; the pronounced aromas of walnut and rancio confirmed our first impressions. Fortunately, a 1911 Monbazillac brightened up dessert with its incredible precision and delicious aromas that were still very fresh. GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

NEWS

The secret is in the ingredients

WHITE BURGUNDIES Ravenot - 2002 Chablis Premier Cru Montée de Tonnerre Olivier Leflaive - 1988 Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles RED BURGUNDIES Naigean-Chauveau - 1961 Corton Paul Etienne - 1929 Gevrey-Chambertin

RED BORDEAUX Saint-Julien - 1961 Ducru-Beaucaillou Saint-Emilion - 1955 Pavie Pauillac - 1929 Pichon-Comtesse Saint-Julien - 1918 Léoville Las-Cases RED RHÔNE Châteauneuf du Pape - 1935 Clos des Papes Emmanuel Brunel and his chef, David Grelier

SWEET WINE FROM THE SOUTH-WEST Monbazillac - 1911 Château de la Salagre

For many years, Emmanuel Brunel honed his skills as a sommelier in Montpellier before opening a restaurant in Lunel. His ethos is simple: finding products of the highest standard that will fully reveal themselves on the plate. The eggs come from his own chicken, the vegetables from his kitchen garden and the wild boar on the menu was hunted and shot by himself, not forgetting the myriad local producers he works with year-round (ham, foie gras, oysters…). The wine list lives up to expectations with 100 or so carefully selected wines with particular emphasis on local growers and affordable prices. The end result is highly successful, delicious and authentic; an ode to pleasure that has already won over local residents as well as tourists keen to discover a good address while on holiday. ©ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

L’ANGUILLE SOUS CLOCHE 42, rue Roger Salengro - 34400 Lunel - France Tel. +33 (0)4 67 22 38 47

OLDER VINTAGES ARE ALWAYS A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY

Emmanuel Brunel honed his skills as a sommelier in Montpellier before opening a restaurant in Lunel

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Perfection seemed a long way off but obviously we must not lose sight of the fact that wine is a living thing and like us, it has its imperfections that can become more apparent with age. Irrespective of the quality of the wine in the bottle, this type of tasting is always a huge pleasure, a voyage of discovery full of uncertainties, disappointments and moments of sheer delight. So we should make allowances for these wines, especially the oldest ones. Sylvain Patard

ADVERTORIAL

Cavavin gets a new look Established in 1985 by Michel Bourel, the group currently boasts 120 stores in France and even a n e w l y- o p e n e d d e p a rt m e n t i n England. The new store concept is highly innovative and more consumerfriendly. The pictures speak for themselves! he Cavavin concept was inspired by a simple fact: at a time when the wine world is becoming more modern, the old fashioned image of wine merchants needs a revamp. Cavavin’s new concept is thus inspired by the need for modernisation. The stores are minimalist and airy in design so as to invite the consumer to discover new wines in a warm and friendly setting.

Changes have been introduced both inside and out, starting with the fascia and its charcoal grey tones. These have replaced Cavavin’s traditional green for reasons of sobriety, elegance and… planning restrictions. The shop front now truly draws wine lovers and consumers inside. The windows are floor to ceiling, increasing the impression of depth and atmosphere, and the display units make the space extremely dynamic. A harmonious choice of colours and materials are the crowning glory of a concept combining modernism and terroir.

Inside, the display units have been totally redesigned with the same concern for sobriety and so that the entire range can be seen at a glance. The shop is light and airy and bottle presentation is pleasing to the eye. Each range has its own area and the spirits are displayed behind a slate counter stamped with a large, bright Cavavin bunch of grapes. The aim of the new concept is to come as close as possible to a warm, friendly and familiar environment.

For more information: www.cavavin.fr

SOME OF THE FORTUNATE WINE MERCHANTS IN THE CAVAVIN NETWORK WHO ALREADY HAVE THE NEW SHOP FITTINGS

M. GAMBIER (LE HAVRE)

M. GEBLEUX (CHANTILLY)

M. LAMANT (THIONVILLE)

M. VALENTIN (RÉUNION)

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

NEWS

ALIMENTARIA 2012:

a major success

nnual international food and drinks exhibition Alimentaria was held at Barcelona's Fira Gran Via venue at the end of March. Lasting for four days, this is one of the most important food and drinks trade shows in the world, attended by the major international operators in food and drink manufacturing, distribution and trade. The event's success derives from highly specialised offerings, innovation, and a resolutely international focus. The 19th edition of this trade fair showcased international expansion, competitiveness and brands, featuring around 4,000 companies (a third of which were non-Spanish) who presented their new product offerings and activities across some 95,000 m2. The show was attended by an estimated 140,000 buyers (25% from overseas); visitors and exhibitors took part in a vast programme of conferences and seminars, resulting in around 8,000 business meetings, effectively making Alimentaria THE place to be for the agri-food industry. Alimentaria 2012 also saw the unveiling of the Alimentaria Hub, a 4,000 m² focal point for creativity, expertise and trends across six themed areas, namely Innovation and R&D, Nutrition, Health & Well-being, Internationalisation & Globalisation, Distribution & Retail, Marketing & Media, and

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

ALIMENTARIA IS ONE OF THE WORLD'S MOST IMPORTANT FOOD AND DRINK TRADE SHOWS

Corporate Social Responsibility; a major product exhibition Innoval - displayed more than 140 innovations. Held within Alimentaria, wine and spirits show Intervin once again hosted leading wine brands, and this year welcomed representatives from Moldavia, Lithuania, Holland, the UK and Mexico. Working in collaboration with international trade platforms the International Beverage Network and Global Wines, as well as international food platform AGRELMA, the event was able to significantly broaden its reach worldwide. Show organisers point out that Alimentaria's commitment to internationalisation is born out by figures from the Spanish Wine Market Observatory: in the first nine months of 2011, Spain exported 1.61 billion litres of wine (26.6% up on the same period in 2010), representing some 1.56 billion euros for the industry. ■

GILBERT & GAILLARD gilbertgaillard.com

HIDDEN EXCELLENCE: ITALY'S TOP WHITE WINES

OUR TASTING RESULTS

All our tasting reports are on gilbertgaillard.com

COVER STORY

Hidden excellence: Italy's top white wines Although Italy’s world reputation is generally based on red wines, its top white wines are impressive.

DELPHINE VEISSIÈRE

ITALIAN WHITE WINES AND CHARDONNAY

he wide number of local white grapes grown throughout Italy provides a significant diversity in white wines, in terms of style and provenance. Moving from north to south, through world-renowned Tuscany and its outstanding red wines, it is not unusual to taste some niche appellations such as Vernaccia di San Gimignano, Orvieto white wine, not forgetting the new white wine from the Abruzzo region, where Pecorino, Passerina and Coccociola are planted and vinified. In north-east of Italy, next to the Veneto (known for its Soave and Pinot Grigio production), the region of Fruili-VeneziaGiulia (FVG) has a 90% production of white wines.

Chardonnay is usually used in Lombardy and Trentino to produce sparkling wines. Some great white wines come from Piedmont, where the climate conditions give an elegant touch to the Gavi dei Gavi wines made from Cortese grapes, not unlike the fresh, elegant and mineral Chardonnay cultivated in the north of Burgundy (see our tastings on La Scolca).

In many parts of Italy Chardonnay is blended with other local white grapes like Cortese, Favorita, Erbaluce, Ribolla Delphine lives between Milan Gialla, Albana, Trebbiano, Vermentino, and Paris. She has a PhD in Procanico, Incrocio Manzoni, Verdeca, The Chardonnay grape plays an Catarratto and Viognier. Alternatively, economics from the University important role in Italy: indeed, it is some traditional white wines such as of Paris-Dauphine and holds a found and planted worldwide (apart Soave in Veneto may be exclusively from in the Bordeaux area, where the qualification from the Wine & Spirit made from Garganega grapes (see our appellation rules prohibit its use). In Soave tastings). Despite the stringent Education Trust in London. the south of Italy, local red grapes have demands of the DOCG appellation, old She heads the Italian been sacrificed and pulled up in order vintage Italian white wines are rarely office of Gilbert & Gaillard. to cultivate Chardonnay, which is available. Only two outstanding proconsidered as an internationally wellducers from Friuli - namely Mario Schiopetto and Gianfranco Gallo di Vie di Romans - seem to known grape giving higher revenues than local red wines understand the amazing oppportunity that older vintages represent made with Grenache, Mataro. In Italy, outstanding wines are for wine lovers and collectors. Old habits die hard: red wine made with Chardonnay (for example in the Colli Orientali DOC ageing in Piedmont and Tuscany can be outstanding, for example, - see table), even if oak levels and yields sometimes appear exaggerated: often, local consumers confuse Pinot Blanc and but the same is not true for whites. The explanation may be found Chardonnay. in the fact that the Mediterranean climate which dominates the

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Hidden excellence: Italy's top white wines

SOAVE: THE COMPLEX PATCHWORK OF DIFFERENT APPELLATIONS (DOC, DOC CLASSICO AND DOCG)

Thanks to the influence of the Alps, the climate of north-east Italy is mainly mid-continental, which helps produce the most pure and elegant white wines. Dry weather in autumn favours the making of intensely-flavoured white wines with a potential for high alcohol levels, which may be vinified as sweet wines (like Ramandolo or Picolit). We enjoyed the Conte d’Attimis-Maniago Picolit 2008 with its fascinating, bright amber colour and its fruit-forward nose of roasted chestnut, dried apricot and cinnamon, along with mineral and steely aromas. The palate is sweet and well-balanced, with freshness, dried fruit, and hints of candied orange. This is an outstanding sweet wine, elegant and well-made, characterised by a pleasant finish with a caramel notes and impressive length (92/100). Trentino’s Chardonnay also has a good reputation for its dry white wines. We enjoyed the Cantine Monfort whites, especially Casata Monfort, Blanc de Sers 2010. Its bright lemon colour, intense nose and spring-like elegance captured our attention. Creamy and fruit-driven, the palate is silky and well-delineated, with an elegant, clean finish (88/100).

Italian peninsula has frequently obliged winegrowers to harvest early to retain freshness, fruit and aromatic complexity. The dry summers and winter rain fall are suitable for the production of full-bodied, richly textured red wines with ripe tannins, like Sangiovese and Nebbiolo.

name Antispila oinophylla, had previously been confused with a North American species (Antispila ampelopsifoliella) which feeds on Virginia creeper. So far, the species has been found in vineyards in Italy's Trento and Veneto regions, spreading and increasing in population size since it was first recorded. Having observed the moths in the field, scientists conclude that the insect seems to have a preference for the leaves of Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Muscat grapes, but the economic impact of this particular pest is not yet clear. Should we expect the gradual abandon of Chardonnay plantings? Or will this perhaps encourage Italian producers of outstanding Chardonnay to redouble their efforts to save Italian Chardonnay?

Chardonnay plantings in the north of Italy seem to be in danger. Currently, scientists have discovered that a moth with a taste for Chardonnay leaves has infested vineyards across northern Italy. The pest was first discovered by Italian scientists in 2006, but they were unable to identify it; the new species, which now bears the

At our most recent tastings, dry whites wines made with Sauvignon and Pinot Grigio impressed us with their aromatic intensity; Pinot Bianco and Ribolla Gialla are less intense and usually rather anonymous, both on the nose and the palate. This explains why in most cases, Ribolla Gialla is produced and blended in sparkling wines. Friulano and Malvasia are two other local grapes which we will describe later.

LAMBERTI'S SOAVE ARE MADE WITH GARGANEGA GRAPES CULTIVATED IN THE DEDICATED "CLOS" CALLED "LA PRAELLA" GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

COVER STORY

Consumption of table wines is falling and production costs are increasing, making the pulling up of vines more profitable than wine production in some areas. In 2008/2009 Italy’s 250,000 hectares were slated to be reduced by 12,000 hectares as growers took advantage of subsidies from Brussels to pull up their vines. The problem is that this money will have been taken by people with old, low-yielding vineyards who cannot cover the costs of production, and thus, Italy is not producing enough good wine. Nevertheless, even if the quality of many of the wines produced in 2010 is rather very different from one area to another, from north to south, Italy’s growing reputation for quality and innovation remains. This will be aided by the release of the 2010 Friulan top white wines, and some others from Veneto and Piedmont.

The foreign markets are usually strongly oriented towards Italian red wines. However, Italian white wines would seem to offer remarkable potential in terms of international market share development, especially in northern European countries such as Norway, thanks to their general quality enhancement obtained through innovation in the vineyard and cellars.

CORTE MOSCHINA MAKES WELL- BALANCED, TYPICAL ITALIAN WHITE WINES FROM GARGANEGA AND TREBBIANO GRAPES

ITALIAN WHITE WINES: 2010 VINTAGE The 2010 harvest was late in comparison with that of 2009, which was outstanding in places, very good in others and, in a few, challenging at best. In 2010, a rainy spring topped up the country’s

Produced in huge volumes between Veneto and Friuli-VeneziaGiulia, Pinot Grigio remains the principal competitive market for Italy, mainly driven by the US and UK. Generic white grapes, Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, base sparkling wines (Durello, Erbaluce di Caluso, Ribolla Gialla) and Moscato are the main visible commodities on the international white wine markets. Currently, Chardonnay and Moscato seem to be the only two grapes that have registered stable prices, while Pinot Grigio and Italian generic white wines follow their growth on international requests. The Conti Formentini estate - located in the Collio area (FVG region) and belonging to the most important Italian group (Gruppo Italiano Vino) - has chosen to produce only non-blended white wines with pure Chardonnay, Ribolla Gialla, Friulano, Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon. The 2010 vintage at Conti Formentini estate is easy-drinking, linear and immediate: aromas are discret and vegetal, both on the nose and palate. Sauvignon Coligo 2010 caught our attention with its classic style, silky texture, vivid freshness and elegant finish.

water reserves. Summer was also wet compared to 2009, and grape maturation was late in some regions such as Tuscany. Beyond that, generalisation in Italy is risky and renders trite the country’s complex patchwork of regions. In 2010, 46 million hectolitres were produced (ie. one million hectolitres more compared to 2009). Veneto was the major producer, followed by Puglia and Emilia-Romagna. Nevertheless production in Italy has continued to decline, thanks to the reduced yields over the past three decades, as wine growers look to enhance quality. Some small appellations, such as Schiopettino di Prepotto in Friuli, followed restrictive regulations on yields (50hl/ha) which are roughly similar to Bordeaux Cru classé regulations.

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

In 2010, efforts were made at regional level to put some local grapes centre stage, such as Garganega (the Soave traditional grape base) in Veneto, with new regulations being made to revitalize Soave. From the 2010 vintage onwards, Soave Superiore DOCG and Recioto di Soave are produced exclusively from the traditional grape varieties Garganega and Trebbiano di Soave, thus excluding Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio. This variety is also no longer allowed in the making of regular Soave wine. In the vineyards new regulations have been applied regarding the trellising system, with the reintroduction of the traditional Soave Pergola, with its openings between the vine rows. Garganega grapes are usually characterized by an important presence of benzenoids and norisprenoids and

Hidden excellence: Italy's top white wines

www.scolca.it are driven by resinous and balsamic scents. A late-ripening variety, Garganega needs a large difference between day- and night-time temperatures (in September) to give it its typical aromatic profile, and the Pergola system used in viticulture is essential to guarantee this. The amount of wine bottled has remained at around 430,000 hectolitres for some years now. The situation of Soave in the marketplace is similar to that seen in other Italian appellations. There was a slowdown on the German and UK markets in 2007 and 2008, but 2010 has seen a return to previous sales volumes. Since 2009 Soave sales have been growing by roughly 14% a year.

SOAVE: WORLD FLAGSHIP OF ITALIAN WHITE WINES Soave wines can be produced in the area around the Soave commune, namely in Monteforte, San Martino B.A., Lavagno, Mezzane, Caldiero, Colognola, Illasi, Cazzano di Tramigna, San Bonifacio, Roncà, Montecchia and S. Giovanni Ilarione. Garganega is the principal grape cultivated on the hillsides, and particularly in the Alpone, Tramigna, Illasi and Mezzane valleys. In the case of Veronese white wines, the presence of clay in the soil and the tuffo hillsides with their volcanic origins (as at Etna, in Sicily) are responsible for the difference in Soave’s styles. The climate is mild and temperatures in winter are not too cold. In 1931, Soave was already known as a typical, fine white wine and

was registered as a DOC appellation in 1968; the Soave Superiore DOCG, possibly the most outstanding, was registered in 2001. The word “Classico” written on a wine bottle label close to the appellation “Soave” usually indicates that the harvested and vinified grapes are grown exclusively in the areas of the Soave and Monteforte d’Alpone communes. This ancient area of production, with its castles, churches and medieval-style villages, is known as the “zona storica”; this is the heart of the Soave production area. Soave DOC is generally an easy, approachable wine with a clear, lemon or lemon-green robe and medium intensity nose. Despite some new interpretations of Garganega which provide off-dry and heavy wines, Soave is usually a dry, white, easy-drinking wine that is good as an aperitif or with simple, everyday food. It is ready to drink after the summer which follows the previous harvest. A Soave that is too youthful shows short length with a vegetal, bitter finish, lacking the typical stone fruit aromas like apricot, acacia honey and fresh almonds. The 2010 vintage is ready for drinking and in some instances will still improve, while 2011 needs to develop until next September 2012. We enjoyed the Corte Moschina I Tarai 2009 with its gold colour and open nose; it is clean, fragrant and deep, mineral and floral. The palate is off-dry and inviting; the length is good, with an elegant ending. I Tarai is a balanced wine that is typical of the Soave DOC appellation (91/100). GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

COVER STORY

DOCG is usually deeper in colour. Bright and clear, aromas are generally deeper too, and have the ability to age well. Looking back at our last tastings of Cantina di Monforte and Dal Cero wines (both from 2010), our comments and conclusions are surprisingly less enthusiastic in comparison with other Soave appellations for both wines, which struck us as unbalanced between nose, palate and finish. Is the 2010 vintage too young to drink? Is it too ambitious to expect a Garganega wine to acquire the characteristics of an aged white Sauvignon from the Loire?

SUAVIA IS A VENETIAN FAMILY ESTATE CURRENTLY PRODUCING ONE OF THE FINEST SOAVE WINES

Naturally, Garganega does not develop a large aromatic range of aromas through the fruit, floral, spicy and vegetal ones usually found in a white wine. It is focused on delicate aromas of flowers and herbs, with a typical hint of fresh almond. Garganega is a late-ripening grape that is only ready to be harvested in October; we also noted that in some wines, besides the vegetal note, the palate shows some green tannins and bitterness. Freshness is not one of its principal characteristics and it could be compared with Sauvignon for its vegetal aspect, but not for the aromatic intensity and fruit. Garganega makes wines that are dry to off-dry, and produces the very pleasant, sweet wine known as Recioto di Soave

Soave Classico DOC is more ambitious and produced on the hillside areas of Soave and Monteforte. It has developed its closest characteristics with Soave DOC, with further ageing capacities, and it can surprise the wine lover with its mineral, autolytic nose expressing lees and kerosene, and even some smoke and stony aromas when aged. The 2010 vintage from the Lamberti Santepietre and Fornaro estates are our favourite Soave Classico picks, while Suavia Le Rive Soave DOC Classico 2007 is the best wine of this kind that we have tasted to date. With its clear, lemongreen robe, Lamberti Santepietre 2010 develops a typical vegetal nose balanced with hints of white pepper, stones and kerosene, and pleasant notes of honey and beeswax. The palate is dry and fresh, with good length and a clay-like texture. Santepietre 2010 is intriguing and well-made, closing on a pleasant note of fresh almonds. It is ready to drink, and ideally matched with ovenroasted capon (90/100). Soave Classico Fornaro 2010, is a clear, lemon-green wine with a vegetal, floral nose, showing hints of kerosene. It is a fruit-driven, mineral wine with good length and a real personality (91/100). Suavia Le Rive 2007 displays a clear, gold colour and a slowly developing nose that hints at kerosene and flint. On the palate it is dry, with good length, closing on a pleasant note of bitterness, yellow fruit (apricot) and cream. Balanced, complex and typical, it is an outstanding Soave wine that would be well-matched with pumpkin (92/100). Soave Superiore DOCG is produced on the Soave hillsides. This wine may age a little longer in the cellar, compared with the two other appellations. Oak can be used for ageing and wines should deliver higher ripening characteristics and complexity. Soave

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

LAMBERTI'S WINE MAKER NARCISO FAGGIAN IS PART OF GRUPPO ITALIANO VINI

Hidden excellence: Italy's top white wines

The aftertaste is precise and savoury, with accents of bitter almond; an elegant wine (88/100). Sicily and Campania provide authentic and genuine wines with a strong personality when wellmade. Etna is a terroir of excellence for white wines thanks to the combination of the Mediterranean climate, altitude (the Benanti estate has planted its vineyards at up to 600 metres altitude) and volcanic terrain providing the wines with pleasant mineral aromas and flavours of stone, flint and smoke. Freshness is usually preserved thanks to the differences in temperature between night and day, and the dry and windy climate.

GARGANEGA GRAPES RIPEN AROUND THE CHARMING VILLAGE OF SOAVE, BETWEEN VERONA AND VENICE DOCG. Fornaro 2009 is a sweet, clear, amber-coloured wine with a pleasant nose of dried apricot and a hint of mint. Balanced and well-made, it is ideally matched with aged blue cheese (86/100). Coffele Le Sponde 2009 shows also a bright, clear, amber colour with a nose of sultanas and raisins; it is sweet and clean on the palate, with well-integrated tannins. An attractive sweet wine to be matched with salty or sweet dishes with a trace of liquorice (86/100).

In Campania, our top picks are from Avellino's Cantine di San Domenico, which produced an excellent Greco di Tufo DOCG and Fiano di Avellino DOCG. The latter’s 2010 vintage can be described as a bright, golden-hued white wine with an intense nose of fruit, acacia honey, dried flowers and a mineral touch. The palate is full and open, with aromas of mild tobacco, honey and wax. A focused yet easy-drinking wine with a finish of caramel and white pepper (90/100). By way of contrast, San Domenico Greco di Tufo 2010 boasts a bright, golden hue and a complex,distinctive nose, blending cedar and white pepper, white flowers, dried almond and wax. It shows a full, crisp and mineral palate capped off with notes of coulis and bitter almonds (91/100). Tuscany delivers some curious white wines via the Vernaccia di San Gimignano appellation that should be tasted for reasons of cultural curiosity, particularly by those on

TOP PICKS FROM AROUND ITALY

In the Marche region, Fazi Battaglia is one of the biggest producers of white wines made from Verdicchio, known and distributed in the major wine shops, supermarkets and trattorias of Italy. Fazi Battaglia’s favourite wine is currently the Verdicchio San Sisto 2007, with its deep gold colour, evolved and complex nose of candied fruits, citrus and honey, backed by subtle mineral undertones and tar notes. An easy-to drink, fruity wine with a fresh palate and good balance (86/100). In Abruzzo, bulk wine producer Cantina Tollo proposes an interesting dry white wine made with the unknown indigenous grape variety Coccociola; it is straw-yellow with golden highlights and has a nose dominated by dried fruits, ripe pear and aniseed. The palate is full and fresh, and shows wonderful structure.

Our top picks are located in many places throughout the Italian mosaic of vineyards, from Tuscany through the Marche and Abruzzo regions, moving to Campania, Sicily and Sardinia, not forgetting the Vermentino white wines also produced on the Maremma appellation on the Tuscan coast.

DAMIANO FORNARO MAKES SOAVE THAT RESPECTS LOCAL TRADITIONS AND SAVOIR-FAIRE GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

COVER STORY

a wine tour. As an example, Podere La Castellaccia makes a Vernaccia Astrea 2010 with a straw-yellow robe tinged with green. The nose is creamy with hints of fresh yeast and hay; floral notes are revealed by swirling. On the palate, this is a dry, lively, distinctive wine with subdued fruit (80/100).

years, La Scolca has continued to focus on classical Gavi wines, making complex, fresh and fruity white cuvées with Cortese grapes. Located in Rovereto, the “grand cru” of Cortese, La Scolca wines have an aristocratic personality and sincere style; they are mineral and intense, with a long, elegant length. The Gavi wine made from Cortese grapes was invented in La Scolca in 1919.

THE EXCELLENCE OF PIEDMONT The estate manages about 50 hectares of vineyard, and vines are planted to a density of 1500 plants per hectare. In this geographical position, the micro-climate is characterised by continuous sea breezes, full exposure from sunrise to sunset, freshness and a certain humidity. These factors combine to create the best conditions for the ripeness of the grapes. Our top pick is La Scolca d’Antan 2000, only produced in the best years and bottled after up to 10 years ageing in the cellar; it is a light golden wine characterised by an open and complex nose (hints of chocolate and tobacco) enriched with toasted notes and gunflint. A highly expressive, lively, focused palate boasts wonderful structure and finishes on a salty

Contrary to Burgundy, the Piedmont region has not needed to cultivate Chardonnay to build its international reputation on red and white wines, relying instead on Nebbiolo (for the red wines) and Cortese and Moscato d’Asti for the dry and sweet white wines respectively. Viti- and vinicultural traditions alone are a guarantee of quality and outstanding wines. La Scolca estate is one of these success stories, producing excellent Gavi dei Gavi wines. It was taken over between 1917 and 1919 by the great-grandfather of Giorgio Soldati, who presently heads up the estate with his daughter Chiara (the fifth generation). La Scolca is the oldest estate in this area. Though innovations have been made over the last ninety

THE PRINCIPAL APPELLATIONS OF FRIULI ARE COLLI ORIENTALI, CARSO, ISONZO, GRAVE AND AQUILEIA 26

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Hidden excellence: Italy's top white wines

Cantine Ullio: A winemaker faithful to tradition he Piedmont estate of Cantine Ullio was founded in 1885 by the will and passion of great-grandfather Franco, then passed down to grandfather Angelo, then to the next generation, and since 2008 it has been headed up by descendant Denis Calvo who works with respect for the family's winemaking traditions and style, adding his own rigorous personality to the wines. By exploiting the land's clayish-sandy soil and good exposure to the sunshine from the east and west, Cantine Ullio cultivates its vineyards at an altitude of 421 metres with total respect for the environment, producing traditional fine wines that are appreciated by the most demanding wine lovers of Piedmont-style reds. After our high quality grapes selection, only 90,000 bottles are made each year and aged in our cellar of Montiglio Monferrato, in the Asti area. We are proud of our wines, made only from our very own grapes. Our beautiful Barbera d’Asti DOCG “Al Culumbè” is our flagship wine; it is a unique expression of terroir and can be described as a tannic, harmonious and elegant wine able to age well. It is best appreciated with elegant Italian cuisine based on meat, truffles and aged cheeses. Al Culumbè 2009 is a beautiful ruby-red hued wine with a vegetal and floral nose of roses and violets, opening up to dark wild fruits. The palate is full, smooth and well-structured. Our Barbera Superiore “Al Culumbè” has concentrated fruit and spice aromas (91/100). Our new challenge, thanks to the partnership with our friend Philippe, is to make our wines selected by demanding importers and local distributors around the world. The first success are especially in Poland, Germany, Switzerland, USA, South-Korea and China.

Azienda Vitivinicola Ullio Via alla stazione, 7 - 14026 Montiglio Monferrato (Asti) Tel: +39-0141994245 - www.viniullio.eu

note (91/100). La Scolca Gavi dei Gavi 2007 is more accessible and approachable; it has a lemon-coloured robe, an open nose built around citrus fruit peel aromas along with a touch of gunflint, and a hint of floral and herbal aromas. Well balanced and harmonious in the mouth, we enjoyed its velvety texture (89/100). Grapes are selected cluster by cluster from vines located high in the hillsides of Rovereto.

Selecting a Friulan white wine seems to be easy considering the large offer available. More than 20 grape varieties are cultivated in the principal appellations of Friuli which are: Colli Orientali, Carso, Isonzo, Grave and Aquileia. Excellence is usually associated with Friuli but the 2010 vintage was rainier and colder in comparison with 2009 and 1998, especially in May and September, and therefore could be described as a “minor vintage.” Can we really consider 2010 as a “lesser” year in Friuli? After tasting more than 120 wines we concluded that wine-making has made the difference. Through its climatic characteristics, 2010 represents an “old style” vintage closest to the average temperature registered during the 1991 to 2000 period. Vintages 2002-2003 and 2007-2009 were the hottest years of the last ten, while 2003 remains the driest. The temperature differences between day and night were moderate and created

THE HIDDEN WINES OF FRIULI

FRIULI'S FAMOUS SCHIOPETTO ESTATE IS SITUATED IN THE HEART OF THE COLLIO AREA

Continued on page 29

GILBERT & GAILLARD

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COVER STORY

OUR BEST PICKS OF SOAVE DRY WHITE WINES SOAVE DOC CLASSICO 92/100 91/100 90/100 89/100 88/100 88/100 88/100 86/100 85/100 85/100 85/100

Suavia Le rive Damiano Fornaro Lamberti Santepietre Coffele Cà Visco Cantina del Castello Castello Le Mandolare Monte Sella Cantina di Monteforte Il vicario Le Mandolare Corte Menini Gini Sandro La Froscà Gini Sandro Salvarenza Bolla Rétro SOAVE DOC

2007 2010 2010 2010 2010 2009 2010 2010 2009 2009 2010

91/100 86/100 86/100 85/100

Corte Moschina I Tarai Portinari Le Albare Franchetto Antonio La Capelina Dal Cero Corte Giacobbe SOAVE SUPERIORE DOCG

2009 2009 2011 2011

Sandro de Bruno

2008

87/100

Monte San Piero

OUR BEST PICKS OF FRIULI DRY WHITE WINES ISONZO DEL FRIULI DOC

Ermacora

Sauvignon

2010

89/100 88/100

Ronco delle Betulle

Friulano

2010

Borgo Judrio

Friulano

2010

88/100

Il Roncal

88/100

Volpe Pasini

88/100

Vigna Traverso

Sauvignon

2010

87/100

Butussi

Pinot grigio

2010

87/100

Arzenton

Pinot grigio

2010

87/100

Conte d'Attimis Maniago

Chardonnay

2010

87/100

Angoris

Spiule

2010

87/100

Marinig

Sauvignon

2010

87/100

Roncsoreli

Pinot grigio ramato

2009

86/100

La Buse dal Lof

86/100

Butussi

86/100 86/100 86/100

Stanig

86/100

Le due Terre

86/100

Livio Felluga

86/100

Ronco delle Betulle

85/100

Specogna

85/100

Collavini

85/100 85/100 85/100

Bastianich Vigna Traverso

Pinot grigio

2010

Sauvignon Zuc di volpe

2010

Pinot grigio

2010

Bianco di corte

2010

Specogna

Friulano

2010

Arzenton

Sauvignon

2010

Sauvignon

2010

Sacrisassi bianco

2009

Illivio

2010

Vanessa

2008

Chardonnay

2009

Turian - Ribolla gialla

2010

Comelli

Amplius

2010

Comelli

Sauvignon

2010

Plus

2007

Pinot grigio

2010

Collio bianco

2010

96/100

Vie di Romans

Chardonnay

1989

85/100

95/100

Vie di Romans

Flors di Uis

1992

85/100

Angoris

95/100

Vie di Romans

Piere Sauvignon

1995 Euro Parovel

Vinja Barde - Matos Nonet

2007

CARSO DOC

93/100

Vie di Romans

Flors di Uis

1995

92/100

Vie di Romans

Piere Sauvignon

1996

90/100

Euro Parovel

Vinja Barde - Malvasia Istriana

2010

Gris

2009

87/100

Euro Parovel

Vinja Barde - Vitovska

2010

Friulano

2010 Schiopetto

92/100

Lis Neris

91/100

Ferlat Silvano

COLLIO DOC

90/100

Lis Neris

Jurosa

2009

90/100

Lis Neris

Picol

2010

88/100

Humar Collavini

Sauvignon

2010

Friulano

2010

Broy

2010

89/100

I Feudi Di Romans

Pinot grigio

2011

88/100

89/100

Vie di Romans

Chardonnay

2004

87/100

Humar

Ribolla gialla

2010

Schiopetto

Pinot grigio

2010

89/100

Masut da Rive

Sauvignon Rive alte

2010

87/100

89/100

Masut da Rive

Maurùs Chardonnay

2009

87/100

Castello di Spessa

Pinot bianco

2010

Friulano

2011

86/100

Schiopetto

Pinot bianco

2010

Chardonnay settevigne

2010

86/100

Schiopetto

Friulano

2010

88/100

I Feudi Di Romans

87/100

Ronco del Gelso

GRAVE DEL FRIULI DOC

86/100

Borgo San Daniele

Pinot grigio

2010

86/100

Ferlat Silvano

Sauvignon

2010

89/100

Le monde

86/100

Ronco del Gelso

Friulano

2010

88/100

Cantina San Martino

85/100

Tenuta Luisa Eddi

Pinot bianco Luisa

2010

87/100

Tenute Tomasella

85/100

Borgo San Daniele

Friulano

2010

86/100

Antonutti

Vis Terrae

2010

85/100

Colmello di Grotta

Pinot grigio

2010

85/100

Le monde

Pinot grigio

2010

85/100

Le monde

Chardonnay

2010

93/100

Roncsoreli

92/100 90/100

COLLI ORIENTALI DEL FRIULI DOC

89/100

Friulano

2010

Braida Santa Cecilia

2010

Le Bastie bianco

2006

VENEZIA GIULIA IGT

Ottolustri

2009

Conte d'Attimis Maniago

Sauvignon

2010

91/100

La Bellanotte

Pizzulin

Sauvignon

2010

89/100

Tenuta Luisa Eddi

89/100

La Viarte

Sauvignon

2010

88/100

Bastianich

Vespa bianco

2009

89/100

Specogna

Sauvignon

2010

86/100

Schiopetto

Blanc des rosis

2010

GILBERT & GAILLARD

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Pinot grigio 'Conte Lucio' ramato 2009 Desiderirum I Ferretti

2010

Hidden excellence: Italy's top white wines

THE SCHIOPETTO FAMILY RESPECTS MARIO SCHIOPETTO'S INTERPRETATION OF FRIULI TERROIR

humidity during the entire year, producing late-ripening in grapes and later harvest dates. In 2010, quality was defined in the tradeoff faced by the Friulan producers, namely choosing between leaving grapes to ripen for a few extra days despite the high level of humidity and the risk of disease, and harvesting “on time” to ensure the grapes’ health, even if not quite fully ripened.

excellence of Friuli wines over the last few decades. Excellence, rigour and confidence in the ageing ability of wines made only with local grapes like Friulano (ex-Tocai) will open the door to a better understanding of the style and personality of each winemaker; this confidence is shared by both long-term and emerging producers such as Schiopetto, Lis Neris and Venica & Venica.

Chardonnay buds quite early, putting the coolest vineyards at risk

Purity - compared to the blending of local grapes with recent and

from spring frosts. Picking time is crucial for Chardonnay and also

old vintages - reveals the ageing potential of local grapes, traditionally

Friulano grapes because they can quickly lose their acidity in

vinified for family consumption. It gives the opportunity to

the latter stages of ripening. However, Friulano - the most popu-

winegrowers to place their wines on the international and

lar and widely planted white grape variety in Friuli - is a late-bud-

diversified fine wine market. Each producer is able to tell his

ding variety usually used to produce staple wines of the region.

personal story through their “niche” fine wines and thus stand

This does not mean that the 2010 vintage produced only simple,

out, thanks to their own philosophy and their personal interpretation

easy-drinking Friulano wines destined for trattorias and pizzerias,

of nature.

but it does not help this regional flagship white wine, which is consumed largely in Friuli, to be more widely available and

Schiopetto usually produces classic, elegant, fruit-driven wines

appreciated. Old vintages are hard to come by: only the vintage

which are considered to be a high-end quality reference for Friulan

following the last harvest is available, which seems strange to

whites, while Lis Neris gives a clear idea of what perfectionism can

French wine lovers who are used to sipping old Burgundy

mean in Friuli, while Gallo at Vie di Romans is all about innovation

Chardonnays. Our tastings show us that Friulano assumes a good

and a distinct personality. Schiopetto Friulano 2010 has a bright

complexity on the nose and palate after two to three years of

lemon robe; the nose reveals beeswax and cream with pleasant

ageing. Hopefully, some producers such as Schiopetto and

fresh flower hints and wild mint. The palate is open and fresh,

Giancarlo Gallo have left their Friulano, Chardonnay and

with notes of dried almonds, vegetal hints and an elegant finish in

Sauvignon wines to age in the cellar so as to reveal the true

pure Schiopetto style (86/100). Schiopetto Friulano 2006 GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

COVER STORY

impressed us and illustrated just how well this wine can age. Its gold colour with amber hints and fruit-driven nose of fresh yellow plums, fruity syrup, honey and blackcurrant leaf demonstrates how Friulano develops different layers, from floral to vegetal, evolving into a salty tang on the palate, dry and fresh, austere, fruity and creamy. As expected, the finish was elegant and pleasant, and this 2006 boasted a certain freshness: our conclusion was that aged Friulano can be a good alternative to old Friulan Sauvignon. In Isonzo, our attention was caught by the Ferlat Silvano estate and their 2010 Fruilano vintage, with its bright, clear lemon robe with gold hints. The nose of candied fruit also has some herbaceous and liquorice aromas. The palate is creamy, fresh and fruit-driven. This is a well-balanced wine with good length, that could match with elegant Italian cuisine (91/100). Ferlat's exceptional interpretation of the complex 2010 vintage leads us to hope that future vintages will be equally exciting.

THE OWNERS OF PAROVEL ESTATE WORK WITH INDIGENOUS GRAPE VARIETIES vegetal, smoky and stony aromas, with fruit. The palate is dry, fresh, vegetal and creamy, almost oily. The wine is well balanced and the finish is elegant. Conversely, the older vintage of Mario Schiopetto Bianco 2004 has a bright gold robe, a smoky, concentrated and intense nose, with herbal hints and earthy, tobacco-like aromas. The palate is dry, silky and still fresh, combining honey and cream with an elegant finish. The outstanding blended wines of Vie di Romans, namely Fior di Uis 1996 (93/100) and Fior di Uis 1992 (95/100), also used Malvasia grapes (along with Friulano and Riesling) for freshness, elegance and longevity, raising several questions: why not vinify Malvasia Istriana alone? Is it not distinctive enough, like Ribolla Gialla or Pinot Blanc? Does blending of indigenous grape varieties give the best interpretation of territory? Is it really necessary to look for the perfect expression of each single grape through an ideal blending?

Tasting the red and white wines of Roncsorelli also impressed us: particularly appreciated was the outstanding Friulano of Roncsorelli Ottolustri 2009, from the well-known Colli Orientali area. With a golden robe and complex nose, it combines layers of dried fruit, honey, beeswax and smoky aromas; the palate opens with rigorous, elegant fruitiness, well-delineated and very long, characterised by a pleasant finish of fresh almond milk (93/100). Blended with other grape varieties such as Renan Riesling and Friulano, Malvasia Istriana (not to be confused with other Malvasia varieties cultivated for example in Lazio) usually brings freshness and elegance to wines, just as Chardonnay is blended with Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier to make Champagne. Mario Schiopetto Bianco 2006 (a blend of Malvasia, Riesling and Friulano) has a golden colour and an intense nose opening on

On the one hand, blending lends wine an international reference, making it easy to compare with other blended wines, even if made with different indigenous grape varieties, while purity bears witness to terroir and local wine-making. Malvasia is fresh, elegant and vibrant, and in some case, salty. We did not have the opportunity to taste old vintages of Malvasia Istriana; we predict that the Parovel Malvasia will give us food for thought in future vintages. Malvasia Parovel 2010 was fascinating: it had a bright lemon robe, an open, complex nose of very ripe tropical fruit and fresh flowers. The palate was well-structured and fresh, with hints of cream and citrus fruit. We liked the great length and clean finish of this harmonious wine (90/100).

THE PAROVEL CELLAR LOCATED IN THE CARSO AREA AT THE SLOVENIAN BORDER 30

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Pinot Grigio is Italy's flagship variety. Often found in Veneto and confused with the excellent Friulan (usually grown in the Colli Orientali and Isonzo areas), when well-made, this can be best described as a fresh, elegant and complex fine white wine: Lis Neris and La Bella Notte are quality names. Lis Neris Pinot Grigio 2009 from Isonzo shows a bright lemon colour with golden hints and an elegant, persistent nose of flint and kerosene, matched

Hidden excellence: Italy's top white wines

of Friulan, and can also be found in non-Sauvignon white wines. Terroir, and particularly the “ponca” soil typical to the eastern hills of Friuli could explain the intensity and minerality perceived in these wines. We identified mineral aromas and notes of petrol, kerosene, smoke, stone and steel.

Our top picks are: Sauvignon Conte d’Attimis Maniago 2010 (92/100) from Colli Orientali and Lis Neris Picol 2010 from Isonzo (90/100). Old vintages of Sauvignon Vie di Romans (1995 and 1996) are currently the best expressions now present in Friuli, with ratings of 95/100 and 92/100 respectively, because of its overripe style. Schiopetto's Sauvignon 2010 is aromatic and vegetal, with great length, freshness and mineral hints (90/100). The style is austere yet vibrant. The Sauvignon 2006 boasts a bright golden hue; the nose is intense, with aromas of wet wool, melon, mint, eucalyptus and nettle. The palate is open and structured, dry and mineral. Of all the vintages, Sauvignon Schiopetto remains a fruitdriven wine with a strong vegetal taste, impressive length, and a mineral (almost steely), quasi-tannic character.

with honey aromas. The palate is silky, fine-grained and characterized by an expressive freshness; it is well-defined and balanced with hints of fruit and cream. This is a truly personal interpretation of Pinot Grigio puts more neutral, lower-priced styles in the shade (92/100). Another Pinot Grigrio favourite is La Bella Notte Pinot Grigio 2009, IGT Venezie (a second range appellation, not to be confused with the DOC appellation). Its amber colour is distinctive, as are the sherry aromas with kerosene, dried fruit and “rancio” hints. The palate is original and reminds one of the Italian “passito” wines with their dry to off-dry style. It ends on a pleasant note of dried herbs and tobacco (91/100). To finish, we must not forget the excellent expression of Friulan Sauvignon that we had the pleasure of discovering at the unique Vie di Romans Chardonnay vintage tasting. Sauvignon was planted here more than a century ago. It develops local expressions, which can in some ways (think aromatic intensity and minerality) be compared with Loire wines such as Menetou-Salon, Pouilly-Fumé and Sancerre. On the nose and palate, we were surprised by the intensity of vegetal aromas and flavours, in particular blackcurrant and tomato leaf. Mineral aromas are in some cases pronounced and well-integrated in a velvety texture. Fruit is dried and not predominant, except for Masut da Rive and Pizzulin Sauvignon 2010 (89/100 and 90/100 respectively). The almond finish is typical

THE MASUT FAMILY PRODUCES EXCELLENT FRIULAN DRY WHITE WINES WITH A BURGUNDIAN INTERPRETATION OF CHARDONNAY

LIS NERIS OWNER ALVARO PECORARI MAKES A RANGE OF FRIULAN FINE WINES IN THE ISONZO AREA, REFLECTING HIS PASSION FOR RIGOR AND PERFECTIONISM

As we come to the end of this exciting adventure in Italy, we would conclude that of all the Italian white wines encountered during our tastings (and considering the research and innovation in terms of old Chardonnay wines carried out by winemaker Giancarlo Gallo of Vie di Romans), Vie di Romans Chardonnay 1989 is our favourite, showing exemplary balance, complexity, ripeness, freshness and harmony (96/100). Our three Italian white “desert island” wines would be: Vie di Romans Chardonnay 1989 (from Friuli), La Scolca d’Antan 2000 (from Piedmont) and San Domenico Greco di Tufo 2010 (from Campania). ■ GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

COVER STORY

Amazing Spanish whites in a red country It is worth taking a look at the astonishing range of white wines covering the whole country, from north to south, east to west. DIEGO BONNEL

NOW THE SPANISH WHITE WINE OFFERING IS HUGE, VARIED AND ATTRACTIVE 32

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Amazing Spanish whites in a red country

n a country where red wine is king and the Tempranillo grape is the most well-known and respected variety, it was not uncommon to hear people comment that “the best white wine is a red one.” However, things have greatly changed in the last twenty years or so. Now the white wine offering is huge, varied and attractive. You can find whites of all styles, from the Mediterranean (like the excellent Milmanda of Torres), to the maritime (just taste the bewitching San Amaro and you will know why Rias Baixas is one of the most suitable areas in Spain for the production of white wines), not to mention the unique old whites of Viura and Malvasía from Viña Tondonia, or the very special Airén from La Mancha, made without any sulfites. With or without oak, every single profile can be found. Try the fresh, crisp and citrusy Txomin Etxaniz from the Basque country in northern Spain, as an appetizer or with a simple, white, grilled ©ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

fish; if you prefer something more powerful, you might turn to the round, delicately oaky, mouth filling and lingering Louro do Bolo made from the recently rediscovered Godello grape or to the vibrant Verdejo

PREFER SOMETHING MORE POWERFUL? TRY THE ROUND, MOUTH-FILLING LOURO DO BOLO

grape from Belondrade y Lurtón, featuring a good balance between oak and fruit. Both are the perfect companions for white meat with a creamy sauce,

OUR PICKS

or a vol-au-vent with a béchamel and mushroom filling.

WINE

APPELLATION

SCORES

San Amaro 2010

Rias Baixas

96/100

Louro do Bolo 2010

Valdeorras

95/100

Clos Nelin 2007

Priorat DOC

95/100

Rueda

94/100

Rias Baixas

94/100

Txakoli de Getaria

93/100

As Sortes 2009

Valdeorras

93/100

Equipo Navazos Nieeport 2010

Table wine

92/100

Rueda

92/100

Vinos de Madrid

92/100

Bierzo

92/100

Mancha

91/100

Conca de Barberá

90/100

Rioja DOC

90/100

Rueda

90/100

Belondrade y Lurtón 2010 De Saa 2007 Txomin Etxaniz 2010

Las Amedias 2010 Albillo de Bernabeleva 2007 Mengoba 2008

Now it is your turn to wander around and meet all the wonderful people behind all these great wines!

El Patio Airén 2009 Milmanda 2009 Torres Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva 1991 Quinta Apolonia 2009

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

RATED WINES

White wines score top marks f o r diversity

e have decided to divide the wines into two categories: single varietals and blends. The first group boasts prominent names that we will review. First and foremost is Alsace, which offers a broad spectrum of varieties from which three leading names emerge: Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewürztraminer.

When managed correctly, Riesling probably produces some of the finest dry white wines in the world. On highly idiosyncratic sites like Rangen in Thann, southern Alsace, or Schoenenbourg in Riquewihr, it yields gems displaying complexity and aromas of candied lemon, fresh mushroom, gunflint… and the kind of acidity that imparts great longevity. Pinot gris, which is naturally rich, also counterbalances this opulence with evident acidity. This introduces a freshness that showcases crisp aromas of plum and apricot, often coupled with a faint exotic touch. Gewurztraminer has a more deliberately exotic streak with its fragrances of rose petal, lychee, mango and passion fruit. Again, residual sugar plays an important part provided the prerequisite acidity is present and promotes the development of aromatic complexity. The resultant wines can be awesome. In Burgundy, Chardonnay holds pr Beaune is home to the best with the Montrachet family (Puligny, Chassagne…) though also Meursault. In this instance, limestone imparts richness, complexity, harmony and finesse to the wines. Aromas recall white flowers, pastries, toast, honey, almond, hazelnut… The wines boast huge ageability, further augmenting their aromatic spectrum. We recently tasted an absolutely remarkable 1988 Puligny-Montrachet Les Pucelles by Olivier Leflaive. The Loire Valley offers up two different faces, namely Sauvignon and Chenin. Sauvignon is grown in the eastern part, with Sancerre, Ménetou-Salon and Pouilly-Fumé. Sancerre and Ménetou-Salon display delightful character, they are floral and fruity and more often than not recall white flowers and citrus fruits, though they can also show complexity. Pouilly-Fumé is a case apart with its soils of limestone, marl and silica clay which give the blanc fumé the local name for Sauvignon - a mineral personality and pronounced dry character yet at the same time finesse.

There are quality white wines in many wine regions. Over the next few pages, we pay them a glowing tribute. The scores they achieve are a perfect reflection of the superlative quality of the different terroirs and the care with which winegrowers make them. Further west, in Touraine and the Saumur region, Chenin is back in the saddle. This extraordinary grape variety is extremely versatile, yielding dry whites, medium-dry, sweet, noble rot and even sparkling wines. Its primary characteristic is its longevity. Many a time at wineries - particularly in Vouvray - we have tasted wines over a hundred years old that are still in stunning shape. They then achieve incredible complexity which ranks them amongst the best in the world. In the Rhône valley, the exception that proves the rule is Viognier. Harvested on granite terraces overlooking the Rhone, the wines display incredible aromatic personality marked by exotic fruits and unashamed opulence.

BLENDED WINES Moving on to blends, Bordeaux, despite being home to red wines, also produces some superlative quality dry whites in Pessac-Léognan and Graves. The blend comprises Sauvignon, Semillion and Muscadelle which complement each other extremely well, each adding their own qualities of acidity, fat and exotic aromas. Some blends that are aged or even vinted in oak achieve extra complexity. They are mainly drink-young wines though (3-5 years on average) as their aromas tend to fade quickly. No article would be complete without a mention for noble-rot sweet wines from Sauternes. These world-famous wines are drawn from the same varietal blend which develops botrytis due to the mist rising from the tiny river Ciron. A final word for the Rhône valley where a clutch of appellations stand out from the rest. These include Hermitage, Saint-Joseph and Crozes-Hermitage. A fusion of Roussanne and Marsanne grapes produce extremely pure wines with delicious aromas of almond and white peach. Finally, Châteauneuf-du-Pape offers astounding blended whites (Clairette, Picpoul, Roussanne, Bourboulenc and Picardan) that are made in boutique quantities yet are absolutely delicious. Among them are often real gems in terms of finesse and complexity. Gilbert & Gaillard GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

RATED WINES 90/100 AND MORE

OUR PICKS Here are the scores for the best French white wines we tasted in 2011. You will find all of our 2011 tasting notes on our website: www.gilbertgaillard.com

ALSACE

91/100 Domaine André Ehrhart & fils

Alsace Gewürztraminer A.C.

Steingrubler 2008

91/100 Domaine Sipp Mack Lucie Marie Vendanges Tardives - 50 cl 2007

22.80 €

91/100 Domaine Sipp Mack Lucie Marie Vendanges Tardives - 50 cl 2007

22.80 €

90/100 Scherb Bernard et Fils Vendanges Tardives - 50 cl 2007

13.00 €

92/100 Domaine Charles Sparr Sporen 2009

15.00 €

91/100 Jean-Baptiste Adam Kaefferkopf 17.50 €

Vieilles Vignes 2009

90/100 Philippe Gocker Mandelberg 2009

11.80 €

19.10 € 13.00 €

90/100 Domaine Charles Sparr 14.00 € 16.60 €

93/100 Domaine Seppi Landmann Vallée Noble 2001

18.00 €

91/100 Domaine Jean Sipp 25.00 €

Vendanges Tardives 2008 90/100 Jean-Baptiste Adam Letzenberg 2008

19.90 € 16.50 €

Sélection de Grains Nobles - 50 cl 2008 23.00 €

95/100 Domaine Sylvie Spielmann 17.50 €

Kanzlerberg 2006

45.00 €

Vendanges Tardives 1998

14.90 €

91/100 Domaine Pierre Frick Steinert 2009

Vendanges Tardives 2008

17.00 €

91/100 Scherb Bernard et Fils

92/100 Cave Vinicole du Vieil Armand Vieilles Vignes 2007

Alsace Riesling A.C. 92/100 Philippe Gocker

95/100 Domaine Seppi Landmann Zinnkoepflé -

GILBERT & GAILLARD

12.00 €

90/100 Scherb Bernard et Fils

Alsace Grand Cru Riesling A.C.

90/100 Philippe Gocker Rosacker 2007

90/100 Domaine André Blanck et ses Fils Cuvée Baptiste -

94/100 Domaine Pierre Frick Vorbourg -

90/100 Domaine Charles Sparr Mambourg 2008

16.40 €

Clos Ribeaupierre 2003

Alsace Grand Cru Pinot Gris A.C.

17.00 €

90/100 Domaine Agapé Schoenenbourg 2009

Alsace Pinot Gris A.C.

n/a

16.00 €

90/100 Jean-Baptiste Adam Kaefferkopf -

12.00 €

90/100 Domaine Saint-Rémy Hengst 2009

Vendanges Tardives 2008

de Ribeauvillé 2008

90/100 Domaine Sipp Mack Rosacker 2008

n/a

18.10 €

91/100 Domaine Jean Sipp Kirchberg

11.50 €

90/100 Domaine Saint-Rémy Goldert 2009

90/100 Domaine Horcher Mandelberg 2009

Trois Châteaux 2008

Schoenenbourg 2009

90/100 Frédéric Mallo & fils Rosacker Vendanges Tardives - 50 cl 2007

91/100 Kuentz-Bas Alsace Pfersigberg -

Vieilles Vignes 2008

Alsace Grand Cru Gewürztraminer A.C.

9.30 €

13.50 €

SPRING 2012

Vendanges Tardives - 50 cl 2008 90/100 Maison Humbrecht Prestige 2007

12.00 € 10.60 €

RATED WINES 90/100 AND MORE

BORDEAUX Barsac A.C. 98/100 Château Doisy Védrines Vintage 2010

n/a

94/100 Château Myrat Vintage 2010

n/a

Bordeaux A.C. 90/100 Château de Reignac Vintage 2009

18.00 €

Cadillac A.C. 91/100 Château Suau Vintage 2010

n/a

Pessac-Léognan A.C. 99/100 Domaine de Chevalier Vintage 2010

n/a

98/100 Château Carbonnieux Vintage 2010

n/a

97/100 Château de Fieuzal Vintage 2010

n/a

95/100 Château Smith Haut-Lafitte Vintage 2010

n/a

94/100 Château Malartic-Lagravière Vintage 2008

40.00 €

93/100 Château Olivier Vintage 2010

n/a

93/100 Château Haut-Brion Vintage 2010

n/a

93/100 Château Larrivet Haut-Brion Vintage 2009 92/100 Château Papae Clément Vintage 2010

43.00 € n/a

92/100 Château La Mission Haut-Brion Vintage 2010 92/100 Château Latour Martillac Vintage 2010 91/100 Château Le Sartre Vintage 2010

n/a n/a 16.50 €

90/100 Château Couhins Lurton Vintage 2010

n/a

90/100 Château Olivier Vintage 2009

n/a

90/100 Château Le Sartre Vintage 2009 Sauternes A.C. 99/100 Château Rabaud-Promis Vintage 2010

n/a

97/100 Château d'Yquem Vintage 2010

n/a

96/100 Château Doisy-Daëne Vintage 2010

n/a

96/100 Château Lamothe-Guignard Vintage 2010

n/a

96/100 Château Romer Vintage 2010

n/a

95/100 Château d'Arche Vintage 2010

n/a

94/100 Château Caillou Vintage 2010

n/a

94/100 Château Coutet Vintage 2010

n/a

94/100 Château La Tour Blanche Vintage 2007

46.00 €

93/100 Château Filhot Vintage 2009

30.00 €

93/100 Château Roumieu Lacoste 20.00 €

Cuvée André 2007 93/100 Château La Tour Blanche Vintage 2010

n/a

93/100 Château Filhot Vintage 2010

n/a

92/100 Château Filhot Vintage 2008

24.00 €

92/100 Château Lamothe Despujols Vintage 2008

n/a

92/100 Château de Malle Vintage 2010

n/a

92/100 Château Guiraud Vintage 2010

n/a

92/100 Château Broustet Vintage 2010

n/a

91/100 Château Bastor Lamontagne 21.00 €

Vintage 2009

91 /100

PESSAC-LÉOGNAN A.C. Château Le Sartre 2010 Pale yellow. Very enticing nose of ripe citrus fruits (lime) and mild spices. On the palate, wonderful harmony between fat, richness and freshness. More of the same fresh, light aromatics that linger. A good wine for outstanding food.

16.00 €

91/100 Château Haut-Bergeron Vintage 2009

24.00 €

91/100 Château Rayne Vigneau Vintage 2010

n/a

90/100 Château Caillou Vintage 2008

35.00 €

90/100 Duval & Blanchet Les Notes Dorées 2009 15.00 € 90/100 Château Sigalas Rabaud Vintage 2010 90/100 Château Bérénice Vintage 2008

FULL CONTACT DETAILS FOR THIS ESTATE CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE 114

n/a 17.50 €

BURGUNDY Chablis Grand Cru A.C.

91/100 Château Olivier Vintage 2009

31.00 €

91/100 Château Malartic-Lagravière Vintage 2010

n/a

91/100 Château Bouscaut Vintage 2010

n/a

91/100 Château Couhins Vintage 2010

n/a

90/100 Château de France Vintage 2010 90/100 Château Larrivet Haut-Brion Vintage 2010

21.10 €

95/100 Domaine Christian Moreau Père et Fils Les Clos Clos des Hospices dans les Clos 2009 95/100 Domaine Christian Moreau Père et Fils 24.00 €

Les Clos 2009 93/100 Domaine Christian Moreau Père et Fils

24.00 €

Valmur 2009 41.00 €

28.00 €

93/100 Domaine Jean Collet & fils Valmur 2009

GILBERT & GAILLARD

25.00 €

SPRING 2012

RATED WINES 90/100 AND MORE

92/100 Domaine Guy Robin & fils Vaudésir -

96/100 Domaine Alain Patriarche 27.00 €

Vieilles Vignes 2008 92/100 Garnier et Fils Vaudésir 2008

30.00 €

92/100 Garnier et Fils Les Clos 2008

30.00 €

Chablis Premier Cru A.C.

1er Cru Genévrières 2010

60.00 €

96/100 Domaine Guy Bocard 1er Cru Charmes 2008

35.00 €

94/100 Domaine Marc Rougeot 1er Cru

91/100 Domaine du Chardonnay 13.50 €

Montée de Tonnerre 2010 90/100 Domaine de Guette Soleil Vosgros -

14.50 €

Fûts de chêne 2010

90/100 Domaine Alain Geoffroy Fourchaume 2010 90/100 Domaine du Chardonnay Vosgros 2009

n/a

12.50 €

Charmes 2009

35.00 €

93/100 Domaine Guy Bocard Les Narvaux 2008 28.00 € 92/100 Domaine Alain Patriarche Les Grands Charrons 2010

30.00 €

92/100 Domaine Guy Bocard Limozin 2008

28.00 €

91/100 Domaine Alain Patriarche

90/100 Domaine du Chardonnay 13.50 €

Mont de Milieu 2009

90/100 Domaine Guy Robin & fils Montée de Tonnerre 15.00 €

Vieilles Vignes 2009

Les Grands Charrons 2009 90/100 Domaine Brigitte Berthelemot Les Tillets 2010

90/100 Simonnet-Febvre Vaillons 2009

14.75 €

90/100 Domaine Marc Rougeot Monatine 2009

90/100 Simonnet-Febvre Mont de Milieu 2009

15.80 €

90/100 Domaine Guy Bocard

90/100 Domaine Christian Moreau

Les Grands Charrons 2008

Père et Fils Vaillon 2009

12.00 €

90/100 Domaine Hamelin Beauroy 2008

11.95 €

90/100 Domaine Jean Collet & fils

30.00 €

24.00 € 19.00 €

25.00 €

90/100 Domaine Brigitte Berthelemot Les Tillets 2009

24.00 €

Meursault-Blagny A.C. 14.00 €

Montée de Tonnerre 2009 90/100 Domaine Alain Geoffroy Beauroy 2009

14.00 €

96/100 Domaine Alain Patriarche 1er Cru La Pièce sous Bois 2009

46.00 €

90/100 Domaine de Guette Soleil Vosgros 14.50 €

Fûts de chêne 2009

90/100 Château de la Saule 1er Cru

Chambertin Grand Cru A.C. 94/100 Simonnet-Febvre Les Clos 2008

34.95 €

Les Burnins 2009

Chassagne-Montrachet A.C.

Pouilly-Fuissé A.C.

92/100 Domaine Du Duc De Magenta

92/100 Domaine Auvigue

Marquis De Macmahon

Cuvée Hors Classe 2010

1er Cru Abbaye de Morgeot 2008 90/100 Alex Gambal 1er Cru La Maltroie 2009

48.00 € 35.00 €

Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru A.C. 96/100 Domaine Bertagna Vintage 2009

88.00 €

95/100 Maison Jessiaume Vintage 2008

59.00 €

94/100 Domaine Denis Père et Fils Vintage 2009 42.00 €

1er Cru 2009

GILBERT & GAILLARD

55.00 € SPRING 2012

17.00 €

91/100 Domaine Roger Luquet Vieilles Vignes 2009 91/100 Château de Pouilly "Cuvée 1551" 2008

1480 € 18.00 €

90/100 Domaine La Source des Fées

90/100 Domaine Sophie Cinier Vers Cras 2008

98/100 Domaine Alain Patriarche Genévrières

13.50 €

91/100 Domaine Thierry Drouin En Buland 2009 14.00 €

Cep Eternel 2009

Meursault A.C.

Montagny A.C.

18.80 € 18.50 €

90/100 Domaine Pierre Desroches Vintage 2009 10.40 €

RATED WINES 90/100 AND MORE

Puligny-Montrachet A.C.

/100

93/100 Domaine Coudray-Bizot 1er Cru Les Combettes 2001

52.90 €

92/100 Domaine Henri Prudhon & fils Les Enseignères 2008 90/100 Domaine Chanzy Les Reuchaux 2009

20.00 € 24.50 €

Rully A.C. 90/100 Domaine Chanzy L'Hermitage 2009

COTEAUX DE MURVIEL IGP Ravanès Le Renard blanc 2009 Light yellow. Refined, profound nose blending notes of white peach and elegant vanilla-infused, toasted oak. Remarkably full palate with a refined texture supported by lingering freshness. Fruit is focused and crunchy. A remarkable white wine.

FULL CONTACT DETAILS FOR THIS ESTATE CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE 114

11.50 €

Saint-Aubin A.C. 90/100 Château de Santenay En Vesvau 2009

LOIRE VALLEY 15.00 €

96/100 Domaine de Montgilet

Saint-Véran A.C.

16.50 €

Les Trois Schistes 2009

90/100 Domaine des Poncetys Le Clos des Poncetys 2010

Coteaux de l'Aubance A.C.

7.60 €

91/100 Domaine de Haute Perche 14.50 €

Les Fontenelles 2009

Vougeot A.C.

Menetou-Salon A.C.

93/100 Domaine de la Vougeraie 1er Cru

91/100 Domaine de la Tour Saint-Martin

Le Clos Blanc de Vougeot Monopole 2008

59.00 €

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine A.C.

91/100 Domaine de la Vougeraie Clos du Prieuré - Monopole 2009

18.00 €

Honorine 2008

41.00 €

93/100 Domaines et Châteaux Véronique Gunther9.50 €

Chéreau L'Ancestrale 2005 90/100 Domaines et Châteaux

LANGUEDOC-ROUSSILLON

9.50 €

Véronique Gunther-Chéreau Gorges 2005 Coteaux de Murviel IGP Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur Lie A.C. 91/100 Domaine de Ravanès Le Renard Blanc Oméga 2009

46.00 €

Languedoc A.O.P. 91/100 Château Capion Le Colombier 2010

12.00 €

93/100 Gitton Père & Fils Nebula 2008 16.70 €

90/100 Cave Les Vins de Roquebrun 11.65 €

Vin de Pays de l'Hérault 92/100 Domaine Virgile Joly Virgile 2005

8.00 €

92/100 Philippe Raimbault Mosaïque 2010

60.00 € 9.20 € 18.95 € 9.00 €

91/100 Château de Tracy H.D 2008

17.00 €

90/100 Domaine Champeau Silex 2010

10.50 €

90/100 Jean Pabiot et Fils Prestige des 24.00 €

Vin de Pays d'Oc 91/100 Aubai Mema Albion 2010

93/100 Château de Tracy 101 Rangs 2008 93/100 Philippe Raimbault Les Lumeaux 2010

91/100 Cave Les Vins de Roquebrun

Les Fiefs d'Aupenac 2010

Chéreau Comte de Saint-Hubert 2008 Pouilly-Fumé A.C.

Saint-Chinian A.C.

Seigneur d'Aupenac 2010

93/100 Domaines et Châteaux Véronique Gunther-

Fines Caillottes 2009

11.90 €

90/100 Domaine Chauveau 12.00 €

Cuvée Sainte Clélie 2009

GILBERT & GAILLARD

9.00 €

SPRING 2012

RATED WINES 90/100 AND MORE

90/100 Domaine Serge Dagueneau & filles

91/100 Château Husson 18.00 €

Clos des Chaudoux 2008 Quarts de Chaume A.C.

Les Saintes Vierges 2010

18.90 €

91/100 Château Simian La Font d'Hippolyte 2008

26.00 €

Sancerre A.C.

91/100 Domaine de Nalys Eicelènci 2009

30.00 €

92/100 Domaine du Carrou Cuvée "La Jouline" -

Condrieu A.C.

94/100 Domaine des Baumard Vintage 2008

34.00 €

14.50 €

Vieilles Vignes 2009 92/100 Gitton Père & Fils Galinot 2008 91/100 Domaine Pascal et Nicolas Reverdy

14.00 €

91/100 Philippe Raimbault Les Chasseignes 200911.60 € 91/100 Gitton Père & Fils Vigne du Larrey 2010

19.75 €

90/100 Gitton Père & Fils 14.25 €

Les Herses - Silex 2009 90/100 Dionysia Vin des Héros 2010 90/100 Michel Vattan Cuvée Argile 2009

26.00 €

20.75 €

91/100 Daniel Chotard Cuvée Marcel Henri 2009 11.80 € Les Anges Lots 2009

93/100 Gilles Flacher Les Rouelles 2010

n/a 8.00 €

93 /100

CONDRIEU A.C. Domaine Gilles Flacher Les Rouelles 2010 Yellow-gold. Distinctive nose with notes of white fruits, almond and mild spices. The palate is fresh, intense and harmonious, flirting with exotic aromas. A characteristic, crunchy and long wine. Pair with refined foods (white truffle, spiny lobster).

FULL CONTACT DETAILS FOR THIS ESTATE CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE 114

Savennières A.C. 95/100 Loïc Mahé Sectilis Terra 2009

45.00 €

92/100 Domaine Niero Les Ravines 2009

26.00 €

92/100 Domaine FL Chamboureau 2008

15.60 €

90/100 Domaine Boissonnet Vintage 2009

23.00 €

91/100 Domaine du Closel 14.30 €

Les Caillardières 2004

SOUTH-WEST Haut-Montravel A.C.

90/100 Domaine du Closel 24.00 €

95/100 Puy-Servain Terrement - 50cl 2007

90/100 Loïc Mahé Equilibre 2009

22.00 €

95/100 Château Pique-Sègue

90/100 Domaine du Closel La Jalousie 2009

12.00 €

Clos du Papillon 2007

Touraine A.C. 90/100 Famille Gaillard Sauvignon 2010

n/a

Elevé en fûts de chêne 2001

13.90 €

93/100 Puy-Servain Terremont 2007

18.90 €

Jurançon A.C. 95/100 Domaine Bru-Baché L'Eminence 2006

90/100 Domaine Joël Delaunay 5.50 €

Sauvignon blanc 2010 90/100 Domaine Joël Delaunay La Voute 2010

6.50 €

12.75 €

52.00 €

91/100 Domaine Bru-Baché La Quintessence 2008

22.00 €

Monbazillac A.C.

PROVENCE

92/100 Château Bélingard

Bandol A.C.

Blanche de Bosredon 2007

90/100 Domaine de l'Olivette Vintage 2010

15.00 €

Côtes de Provence A.C.

27.00 €

90/100 Château Bélingard Blanche de Bosredon 2007

90/100 Domaine de l'Angueiroun Prestige 2010

15.50 €

Pacherenc du Vic Bilh A.C.

90/100 Château de Berne Cuvée Spéciale 2009

17.00 €

93/100 Château Barréjat

90/100 Domaine de l'Angueiroun Prestige 2009

15.30 €

Cuvée de la Passion - 50 cl 2009

24.00 €

6.90 €

Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh Sec A.C. 91/100 Vignobles Brumont Vintage 2008

RHONE VALLEY

Vin de Pays de Lot et Garonne

Châteauneuf-du-Pape A.C. 92/100 Château de la Gardine Vintage 2009

GILBERT & GAILLARD

n/a

29.00 €

SPRING 2012

90/100 Château Lagrézette Malbec 2010

25.00 €

ADVERTORIAL

Château Peyrassol: A decade of adventure underpinned by eight centuries of history In 2001, Philippe Austruy, a prominent industrialist and passionate wine enthusiast decided to take up a new challenge: to turn the spotlight back on Château Peyrassol, a 70 0-hectare Knights Templar estate with 80 hectares under vine in the heart of the vineyards of Provence, with a turbulent history dating back eight centuries.

hus began the great adventure. All the buildings were renovated in keeping with the original architecture, new plots were planted to vines, the forests were maintained, the “restanques” or dry stone walls were restored, the winery revamped to make room for both modern and traditional equipment, the olive groves were extended, the vineyard replanted, and the oils and wines constantly reviewed to allow their true sense of place to be reasserted. To ensure the project is successful, Philippe Austruy decides to make this a family affair: with his nephew Alban Cacaret who he tasks with the management of the estate, and his sister who runs the “Un Jour à Peyrassol” franchise, they make up a close-knit team charged with completing a thorough overhaul of the property. In just a few years, the achievements are colossal. Pursuing the various projects at the same time is a juggling act and to help them through the upheaval in terms of wine growing, wine making

THE BARREL CELLAR

and oil producing, the team recruits the technical assistance of a partner capable of intervening every step of the way, the Provence agronomic consultancy (CAP).

A TOP-FLIGHT ROSÉ Rosé is still the estate’s flagship wine and is the fruit of a constant quest for freshness and delicateness. The framework of Château Peyrassol wines always centres on balance, combining freshness and complexity against a finely etched backdrop. The estate also offers a range of powerful and charming reds with an assertive character that bear the unmistakable hallmark of their terroir, and ripe, lively whites with the typical complexity of Provence. Ten years into this new adventure, the estate continues its quest f o r e x c e l l e n c e. T h e e x t r e m e l y d y n a m i c s a l e s s t r a t e g y implemented by Alban Cacaret ensures the highest possible return for the wines both at home and abroad. It constantly drives the estate in a dynamic upward spiral with receptions, guest accommodation and eatery, organic wine growing, kitchen garden, constantly upgraded wines… It is an exciting and varied adventure that has continued to nurture Philippe Austruy’s initial passion. His commitment has brought him a haven of peace where he takes pleasure in decompressing with a glass of the wine that he has breathed new life into… ■

ALBAN CACARET AND PIERRE GUÉRIN FROM THE PROVENCE AGRONOMIC CONSULTANCY (CAP)

Château Peyrassol RN7 - 83340 Flassans sur Issole - France Tel. +33 494 69 71 02 - Fax +33 494 59 69 23

www.peyrassol.com Cabinet d’Agronomie Provençale (CAP consultancy) Route des Vins sur Caramy - 83170 Brignoles - France www.cabagronomie.fr

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

RATED WINES 86-89/100

OUR PICKS Here is our selection of excellent French white wines that received scores between 86 and 89 out of 100, in addition to the top white wines scoring 90/100 or more. You can find all of our 2011 tasting notes on our website: www.gilbertgaillard.com

ALSACE 89/100 Domaine André Blanck et ses Fils

Alsace Gewürztraminer A.C.

Schlossberg 2010

89/100 Cave de Beblenheim 20.50 €

88/100 Clos des Terres Brunes Mandelberg 2009 10.50 €

89/100 Frey-Sohler Vendanges Tardives 2007

23.80 €

88/100 Domaine Paul Spannagel et Fils

89/100 Edmond Rentz Burg 2009

10.10 €

Wineck Schlossberg 2008

7.30 €

87/100 Domaine des Marronniers

Vendanges Tardives 2007

89/100 Haegelin Bernard Bollenberg 2009

Kastelberg 2009

89/100 Domaine Agapé Vendanges Tardives - 50 cl 2009

16.40 €

87/100 Frédéric Mallo & fils Rosacker 2007

12.00 € 18.10 € 9.20 €

Alsace Klevener de Heiligenstein A.C.

89/100 Maison Humbrecht 24.70 €

Vendange Tardive 2007

88/100 Domaine Charles Wantz Vintage 2006 Alsace pinot gris A.C.

89/100 Domaine Muller Koeberle 9.00 €

Cuvée Ste Cécile 2009 88/100 Domaine Charles Sparr Vintage 2010

9.00 €

88/100 Château d'Orschwihr Bollenberg 2010

8.50 €

88/100 Vignobles des 2 Lunes Amélie 2009

13.00 € 6.80 €

86/100 Xavier Muller Vintage 2009 Alsace Grand Cru Gewürztraminer A.C. 89/100 Domaine Pierre Frick Eichberg -

23.00 €

Vendanges Tardives 2008 88/100 Bestheim & Châteaux Marckrain 2009

9.95 €

88/100 Domaine André Ehrhart & fils Hengst 2009

9.70 €

9.00 €

89/100 Cave Vinicole du Vieil Armand Sélection de Grains Nobles - 50 cl 2007

29.90 €

89/100 Domaine Horcher Sélection de Grains Nobles - 50 cl 2005

30.00 €

89/100 Domaine Bott Frères Vendange Tardive 2007

27.60 €

88/100 Charles Schleret Vintage 2007

9.90 €

88/100 Domaine Charles Fahrer Jeanne 2010

7.00 €

87/100 Domaine Materne Haegelin et filles Cuvée Elise 2009

9.50 €

87/100 Domaine Aiméstentz Rosenberg 2010

7.70 €

Alsace Grand Cru Muscat A.C.

87/100 Albert Ziegler Cuvée Bollenberg 2010

8.25 €

89/100 Kuentz-Bas Alsace Pfersigberg - Cuvée Caroline -

87/100 Domaine Saint-Rémy Tradition 2009

Vendange Tardive 50 cl 2008

25.50 €

Alsace Grand Cru Pinot Gris A.C. 11.50 €

86/100 Klein Georges et Fils Vintage 2010

7.90 € 5.90 €

Alsace Riesling A.C.

Alsace Grand Cru Riesling A.C. 89/100 Robert Faller et Fils Geisberg 2008

GILBERT & GAILLARD

87/100 Frey Charles et Dominique Cuvée de l'Ours 2010

88/100 Mauler Jean-Paul Mandelberg 2010

9.50 €

22.00 €

SPRING 2012

89/100 Lucien Albrecht Clos Schild 2005

2945 €

RATED WINES 86-89/100

89/100 Jean-Louis Schoepfer Vintage 2009

5.20 €

Sauternes A.C.

88/100 Domaine Jean Sipp Vieilles Vignes 2008

9.50 €

89/100 Château Caillou Vintage 2008

87/100 Vins Fahrer Sylvie Silberberg 2010

5.90 €

88/100 Château Roumieu Lacoste Vintage 2007 18.00 €

86/100 Domaine Sipp Mack Vieilles Vignes 2009

8.20 €

87/100 Château Cantegril Vintage 2008

Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux A.C.

Beaune A.C.

86/100 Château Les Bertrands Cuvee Prestige -

89/100 Domaine Brigitte Berthelemot 7.30 €

15.20 €

Longbois 2009

86/100 Château Berthenon Vintage 2010

4.85 €

Bourgogne A.C.

86/100 Château Haut-Colombier Vintage 2010

7.50 €

86/100 Domaine Albert Grivault Vintage 2009

87/100 Château Loudenne Vintage 2009

14.00 €

86/100 Mayne d’Olivet Vintage 2009

10.00 €

86/100 Château Clos Chaumont Vintage 2010 86/100 Château Belle Garde Vintage 2010

5.50 € 15.00 € 435 € 9.00 € 18.00 €

5.50 € 7.50 €

9.80 €

Vieilles Vignes 2009

10.50

7.50 € 9.00 €

Chablis Grand Cru A.C. 28.00 €

89/100 Domaine Christian Moreau 24.50 €

Chablis Premier Cru A.C. 89/100 Domaine du Chardonnay

88/100 Château Clos Floridène 17.00 €

13.00 €

Montmains 2009

86/100 Château Ferrande Vintage 2010

12.00 €

89/100 Domaine Alain Geoffroy Beauroy 2010

86/100 Château du Seuil Vintage 2010

11.00 €

89/100 Domaine Vocoret & fils

Loupiac A.C.

15.00 € 11.95 €

10.00 €

89/100 Domaine Hamelin Beauroy 2010

87/100 Château du Cros Vintage 2008

14.80 €

89/100 Domaine de la Meulière 13.80 €

Mont de Milieu 2009

Pessac-Léognan A.C. 88/100 Château Larrivet Haut-Brion Vintage 2009 17.00 € 88/100 Château Le Sartre Vintage 2009

12.00 €

88/100 Château de France Vintage 2009

20.10 € n/a

n/a

Montée de Tonnerre 2009

88/100 Clos Jean Vintage 2008

88/100 La Clarté de Haut-Brion Vintage 2010

12.00 €

88/100 Domaine Goisot Anne et Arnaud

Père et Fils Vaudésir 2009

Graves A.C.

Sauvignon blanc 2009

9.90 €

Chablis A.C.

89/100 Domaine Servin Bougros 2008

Entre-Deux-Mers Haut-Bénauge A.C.

89/100 Château Respide Callipyge 2009

88/100 Château de Santenay Monopole 2009

87/100 Roland Lavantureux Vieilles Vignes 2009

88/100 Château La Lande de Taleyran

88/100 Château Haut-Mallet Vintage 2009

Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Beaune A.C.

Vintage 2009

Entre-Deux-Mers A.C.

Vintage 2010

7.00 €

Cuvée 3 Générations 2009

89/100 Garnier et Fils Grains Dorés 2007

Cérons A.C. 88/100 Château Cérons Vintage 2005

86/100 Domaine Ferrey Montangerand

89/100 Domaine Guy Robin & fils

Cadillac A.C. 87/100 Château des Mille Anges 50 cl 2005

10.00 €

Bourgogne Côte Chalonnaise A.C.

Bordeaux A.C.

86/100 Château Thieuley Courselle Vintage 2009

17.65 €

BURGUNDY

BORDEAUX

Elevé en fûts de chêne 2010

23.00 €

89/100 Domaine Jean Collet & fils 12.00 €

Montmains 2009 89/100 Domaine du Château de Fleys Mont de Milieu 2009

GILBERT & GAILLARD

12.00 €

SPRING 2012

RATED WINES 86-89/100

23.00 €

89/100 Domaine du Chalet Pouilly Vintage 2009 13.90 €

88/100 Isabelle et Denis Pommier Beauroy 2007 12.80 €

89/100 Domaine Thierry Drouin En Buland 2007 13.00 €

88/100 Daniel-Etienne Defaix Les Lys 2002

88/100 Domaine de Guette Soleil Vosgros 2009

10.50 €

89/100 Château de Pouilly Cuvée "1551" 2007

87/100 Raoul Gautherin & fils Vaillons 2009

12.00 €

89/100 Domaine Sophie Cinier "Vers Cras" 2009 18.00 €

Fixin A.C. 88/100 Domaine Fougeray de Beauclair 20.40 €

Clos Marion 2009 Mâcon-Chardonnay A.C. 86/100 Château de Messey Les Crêts 2010

n/a

87/100 Domaine Chêne Cuvée Prestige 2009

7.00 €

12.80 €

87/100 Sylvaine & Alain Normand Vintage 2010

10.60 €

87/100 Domaine Château du Clos Vintage 2010 14.50 € 86/100 Cave Coopérative de Chaintré - Les Chevrières -

87/100 Domaine Saint-Denis Vintage 2009

Pouilly-Loché A.C.

11.00 €

Puligny-Montrachet A.C.

Mâcon-Villages A.C.

88/100 Alex Gambal Vintage 2009

86/100 Domaine des Chenevières

87/100 Domaine Du Duc De Magenta 5.30 €

Vieilles Vignes 2010

Rully A.C.

87/100 Domaine Edmond Monnot et Fils

89/100 Domaine Chanzy L'Hermitage 2008 13.50 €

1er Cru La Fussière 2008 Mercurey A.C.

11.50 €

89/100 Domaine Michel Briday 1er Cru Gresigny 2010

89/100 Domaine Michel Juillot

30.00 €

Marquis De Macmahon Les Houillères 2008 25.00 €

Maranges A.C.

15.00 €

89/100 Domaine Gérard Berger-Rive & Fils

Les Vignes de Maillonge 2009

14.25 €

Meursault A.C.

Cuvée Louise 2009 86/100 Domaine Belleville La Crée 2010

89/100 Domaine Vincent Bouzereau Vintage 2009

27.00 €

Saint-Aubin A.C.

89/100 Domaine Guy Bocard Vieilles Vignes 2008

20.00 €

88/100 Domaine Henri Prudhon & fils 1er Cru

89/100 Bourgogne Jean-Luc & Paul Aegerter

Sur le Sentier du Clou 2009 35.00 €

Saint-Romain A.C.

88/100 Domaine Alain Patriarche Les Tillets 2010

28.00 €

89/100 Domaine Henri & Gilles Buisson

87/100 Bourgogne Pierre Gruber Vintage 2009

36.00 €

Réserve Personnelle 2009

Sous la Velle 2009

n/a n/a

14.00 €

16.00 €

Saint-Véran A.C.

Montagny A.C. 88/100 Domaine Michel-Andréotti 1er Cru 2009

8.90 €

Cuvée spéciale en fût de chêne 2009

89/100 Domaine des Poncetys Classic 2010

7.60 €

88/100 Domaine La Source des Fées

88/100 Château de la Saule 1er Cru 12.00 €

Terre des Fées 2010

14.60 €

88/100 Domaine Chavet Michel et Fils

Monthélie A.C.

Elevé en fûts de chêne 2009

89/100 Domaine Marc Rougeot 14.00 €

Les Toisières 2009

87/100 Cave Jean Curial Vintage 2010

Nuits Saint Georges A.C.

Santenay A.C.

88/100 Lupé-Cholet

87/100 Domaine Ponsard-Chevalier

Les Terrasses du Château 2009

38.00 €

Les Daumelles 2009

6.80 € 7.50 €

12.00 €

Savigny les Beaune A.C.

Pouilly-Fuissé A.C. 89/100 Domaine Auvigue Vieilles Vignes 2010

GILBERT & GAILLARD

11.00 €

86/100 Cave des Grands Crus Blancs Vintage 2010 7.00 €

Mâcon-Lugny A.C.

88/100 Domaine Roger Luquet Terroir 2009

Elevé en fûts de chêne 2009

Mâcon-La Roche Vineuse A.C.

18.00 €

15.00 €

SPRING 2012

87/100 Domaine Bernard Dubois & fils Vintage 200912.50 €

RATED WINES 86-89/100

Minervois A.C.

87/100 Château de la Charrière Les Vermots Dessus 2009

15.00 €

Viré-Clessé A.C.

88/100 Château Coupe Roses Vintage 2010

7.80 €

Pays d'Oc I.G.P.

87/100 Cave de Viré Viré d'Or 2009

13.50 €

89/100 Domaine d'Aigues Belles

87/100 Jean Thévenet Cuvée E.J. Thevenet 2005 18.00 €

12.00 €

L'Autre Blanc 2009

9.50 €

89/100 Aubai Mema Sauto Ro 2010

CORSICA

87/100 Domaine de la Yole "1771" 2009 87/100 Domaine les Quatre Amours

Vin de Corse Calvi A.C. 88/100 Clos Culombu Ribbe Rosse 2010

15.00 €

Vin de Corse Porto-Vecchio A.C.

86/100 Vignobles Alain Maurel Chenin 6.00 €

Colombard 2010 8.60 €

87/100 UVAL des Vignerons Corsicans Chardonnay Vendanges passerillées

10.00 €

Cuvée Olga 2010

86/100 Domaine de Torraccia Vintage 2010 Vin de Pays de l’Ile de Beauté

8.00 €

6.00 €

86/100 Mas Pellier Chardonnay 2010 Saint-Chinian A.C. 88/100 Les Coteaux de Berlou

5.60 €

Schisteil "Original" 2010

LANGUEDOC-ROUSSILLON

87/100 Cave Les Vins de Roquebrun

Corbières A.C.

87/100 Cave des Vignerons de St Chinian

Côtes Catalanes I.G.P.

Le Secret des Capitelles 2010

88/100 Château Montana L'Astre Blanc -

86/100 Riberach Hypothèse 2009 86/100 Château de Rey OH de Mucat 2010

9.50 €

86/100 Jeff Carrel by Jeff Carrel 2008

24.00 € 5.30 €

Vin de Pays des Coteaux de Murviel

6.50 € 35.00 €

17.00 €

88/100 Domaine de Longueroche Chardonnay17.00 €

Elevé en fût de chêne 2009 13.50 €

86/100 Vignerons du Sommiérois 4.50 €

Languedoc La Clape A.C. 87/100 Château d'Anglès Vintage 2007

14.90 €

87/100 Domaine des Karantes Vintage 2010

13.00 €

Languedoc Picpoul de Pinet A.C. 87/100 Cave de l'Ormarine Duc de Morny 2010

88/100 Château de L'Ou Vintage 2009 Vin de Pays d'Oc

Languedoc A.C.

Les Romanes 2010

17.00 €

Vin de Pays des Côtes Catalanes

Hérault I.G.P.

88/100 Domaine Stella Nova Les Pléiades 2009

8.95 €

89/100 Domaine de Ravanès Le Renard Blanc 2006

88/100 Domaine Les Filles de Septembre

88/100 Mas de Daumas Gassac Vintage 2010

6.60 €

Vin de Pays de l’Aude

Côtes de Thongue I.G.P.

Clos Marine 2009

4.50 €

Col de la Serre 2010

88/100 Château Beauregard Mirouze Lauzina 2009 11.00 €

Vinifié en fûts de chêne 2010

12.00 €

4.70 €

Limoux A.C.

88 /100

VIN DE PAYS D’OC Domaine de Longueroche Oak-aged Chardonnay 2009 Deep gold. Suggestions of fresh hazelnut, marzipan and white fruit flesh on the nose. The palate expresses full-on roundness and body. Freshness supports crisp, focused and flavoursome fruit. Melted oak. A very compelling wine.

FULL CONTACT DETAILS FOR THIS ESTATE CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE 114

89/100 Domaines Paul Mas Chardonnay Limoux 2009 89/100 Domaine Begude L'Etoile 2008

8.50 € 15.00 €

88/100 Mas des Dames Vintage 2009 87/100 Les Vins Skalli Réserve - Viognier 2010

GILBERT & GAILLARD

n/a 6.50 €

SPRING 2012

RATED WINES 86-89/100

87/100 Château de l'Engarran Cuvée Adélys 2008 13.95 €

87/100 La Tour Gallus Vintage 2009

86/100 La Grange des Quatre Sous

87/100 Château de l'Oiselinière Les Illustres 2009 6.20 € 10.00 €

Le Jeu du Mail 2009

86/100 Fief aux Dames Vintage 2010

n/a

86/100 Domaine des Tilleuls Cuvée Sélection 2010

LOIRE VALLEY

3.30 €

Pouilly-Fumé A.C.

Bonnezeaux A.C. 89/100 Domaine de Terrebrune Prestige 2009

17.00 €

Cheverny A.C. 4.80 €

Clos de Nozieux 2010

8.50 €

Coteaux de l'Aubance A.C. 89/100 Domaine de Montgilet Vintage 2009

7.50 € 17.00 €

89/100 Château de Tracy Vintage 2009

15.00 €

Gemme de Feu 2009 89/100 Domaine Gilles Langlois

86/100 Domaine Maison père & fils Révélation 2010

89/100 Domaine Chauveau La Charmette 2010

89/100 Domaine Landrat-Guyollot

86/100 Vignerons de Mont-Près-Chambord

8.50 €

Les Champs Billards 2009

7.30 €

88/100 Jean Pabiot et Fils Vintage 2010

9.30 €

88/100 Michel Redde & fils La Moynerie 2008

14.00 €

88/100 Domaine Patrice Moreux

Coteaux du Giennois A.C. 87/100 Domaine Quintin Frères Rive Droite 2009

5.80 €

9.50 €

La Loges aux Moines 2010 87/100 Domaine Michel Dutarte Vintage 2010

Coteaux du Layon A.C. 88/100 Domaine FL Les 4 Villages 2009

21.60 €

86/100 Domaine Le Petit Chambord Vintage 2009 7.10 €

87/100 Domaine de Riaux Vintage 2010

Menetou-Salon A.C.

Quincy A.C.

88/100 Domaine de la Tour Saint-Martin

86/100 Domaine Trotereau Vintage 2010 10.80 €

Morogues 2009 87/100 La Busardière Marquis de Maupas 2010

7.00 €

12.00 €

8.00 €

86/100 Domaine Henri Beurdin & fils Vintage 2010 Sancerre A.C.

88/100 Domaine des Pierres Meslières

89/100 Cave des Vins de Sancerre 4.40 €

10.00 €

Reuilly A.C.

Muscadet Coteaux de la Loire A.C.

Vintage 2010

7.50 €

87/100 Domaine Serge Dagueneau & filles Tradition 2010

Cour Cheverny A.C.

6.00 €

17.00 €

Le Clos du Roy 2009

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine A.C.

89/100 Domaine Henry Natter Vintage 2010

n/a

87/100 Lieubeau Vigneron Château-

89/100 Domaine Franck Millet Vintage 2011

9.00 €

89/100 Vincent Grall Vintage 2010

8.00 €

11.50 €

Thébaud 2007

89/100 Dionysia Vin de l'Olympe 2010

Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur Lie A.C. 89/100 Domaine La Haute Févrie Excellence 2009

4.70 €

89/100 Domaine Paul Prieur Vintage 2010

89/100 Domaine R de la Grange Vintage 2009

7.30 €

89/100 Domaine Reverdy Ducroux

Gunther-Chéreau Vintage 2009

8.00 € 14.50 €

Montée de Bouffant 2009

89/100 Domaines et Châteaux Véronique 6.00 €

89/100 Domaine François Millet Confession 2010 10.00 € 89/100 Michel Vattan Cuvée Calcaire 2009

7.50 €

4.50 €

88/100 Philippe Raimbault Les Godons 2010

9.40 €

88/100 Ganichaud Gilbert et Fils Vintage 2005

5.00 €

88/100 Daniel Chotard Vintage 2009

8.40 €

87/100 Domaine Bel Air Vintage 2010

3.80 €

89/100 Château de la Bidière Le Rocher Vieilles Vignes 2010

87/100 Domaine de Beauregard Vieilles Vignes 2009

5.20 €

GILBERT & GAILLARD

4.90 € SPRING 2012

88/100 Gitton Père & Fils Les Romains 2010

13.25 €

88/100 Roger Champault et Fils le Clos du Roy 2010 8.90 € Continued on page 48

Read all our tasting reports on www.gilbertgaillard.com

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RATED WINES 86-89/100

88/100 Domaine du Carrou Chêne Marchand 2010 12.50 € 88/100 Domaine de Champarlan Vintage 2010

7.50 €

88/100 Domaine La Barbotaine Vintage 2010

7.00 €

87/100 André Dezat & Fils Vintage 2010

7.90 €

87/100 Domaine Pascal et Nicolas Reverdy 8.80 €

Terre de Maimbray 2010 87/100 Domaine de la Croix St-Laurent

9.00 €

Vintage 2010 86/100 Domaine Serge Laporte Vintage 2010

7.00 €

86/100 SCEA Vrilleres Vintage 2010

9.00 €

Saumur A.C. 89/100 Langlois-Chateau Vieilles Vignes 2005

14.75 €

86/100 Domaine du Pas Saint-Martin 12.90 €

Jurassique 2010

FULL CONTACT DETAILS FOR THIS ESTATE CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE 114

Bandol A.C. 89/100 Domaine de l'Olivette 2010

14.50 €

88/100 Domaine de la Laidière Vintage 2010

14.50 €

87/100 Domaine La Suffrène Vintage 2010

12.00 €

86/100 Domaine Dupuy de Lôme Vintage 2010

12.00 €

Cassis A.C. 88/100 Domaine de Fontblanche Blanc de Blancs -

86/100 Domaine des Clos Maurice 9.00 €

La Licorne du Clos 2010

/100

BANDOL A.C. Domaine de l'Olivette Vintage 2011 Brilliant light yellow. Fruity nose with lime accents. The palate is wonderfully sappy, fresh, well-balanced and perfumed with a long finish driven by white fruits and exotic touches. Try with a platter of sea urchins.

8.35 €

86/100 Domaine Daniel Reverdy et fils Vintage 2010

Pur Jus de Gouttes 2009

Savennières A.C.

Coteaux d'Aix en Provence A.C.

88/100 Domaine des Baumard

86/100 Domaine de la Cadenière Tendance 2010 18.00 €

Clos du Papillon 2007 88/100 Loïc Mahé Les Fougeraies 2009

14.50 €

Touraine A.C.

12.65 €

4.85 €

Côtes de Provence A.C. 89/100 Peyrassol Vintage 2010

n/a

88/100 Domaine Saint André de Figuière

87/100 Bougrier SA Sauvignon Blanc 2010

4.99 €

86/100 Domaine Baron Sauvignon Blanc 2010 86/100 Château de Fontenay Le sauvignon 2010

n/a 7.00 €

Touraine Amboise A.C. 87/100 Domaine Dutertre Les Ménates 2010

6.50 €

Confidentielle 2009 88/100 Château du Galoupet Vintage 2009 87/100 Domaine de la Sauveuse Vintage 2010 87/100 Château Léoube Vintage 2010

24.20 € 11.20 € 9.50 € 14.80 €

87/100 Château des Launes

Vin de Pays du Val de Loire 88/100 Domaine de la Renne Chardonnay 2010

3.45 €

87/100 Domaine Poiron-Dabin Pinot Gris 6.00 €

Séduction 2010

Cuvée Spéciale 2009

18.50 €

87/100 Domaine de l'Amaurigue Vintage 2010

7.00 €

86/100 Château du Rouët Belle Poule 2010

9.00 €

Vouvray A.C. 87/100 Domaine de la Rouletière Demi-sec 2009

5.50 € 11.50 €

87/100 Vincent Carême Sec 2009

RHONE VALLEY Châteauneuf du Pape A.C. 89/100 Domaine Moulin-Tacussel Vintage 2010

PROVENCE

89/100 Domaine Bosquet des Papes Cuvée Tradition 2010

Alpilles I.G.P. 87/100 Château Romanin Vintage 2010

GILBERT & GAILLARD

24.00 €

11.00 €

SPRING 2012

87/100 Domaine des 3 Cellier L'Insolent 2010

19.50 € 20.20 €

RATED WINES 86-89/100

Condrieu A.C.

Vin de Savoie Chignin-Bergeron A.C.

89/100 Domaine Gilles Flacher Les Rouelles 2009

25.00 €

89/100 Duvernay Vins Vintages Vintage 2009

24.00 €

Costières de Nîmes A.C.

7.50 €

Fleur de Roussanne 2009 87/100 Domaine Jean Vullien et Fils

87/100 Château de la Tuilerie Grenache blanc -

12.00 €

Charme - 50 cl 2009 9.20 €

Viognier 2010

89/100 Jean Perrier & fils

Côtes du Rhône A.C.

Vin de Savoie Jongieux A.C. 86/100 Domaine Edmond Jacquin & fils

89/100 Domaine Nicolas Croze Vieilles Vignes 2010 87/100 Domaine des Favards Le Barriqué 2010 86/100 Jean-Marie Lombard Vintage 2009 86/100 Domaine Beauvalcinte Mon Trésor 2010

5.20 €

Vintage 2010 10.00 € 7.50 €

Vin de Savoie Ripaille A.C. 86/100 Domaine de Ripaille Vintage 2009

6.10 €

10.50 € 7.20 €

SOUTH-WEST Côtes de Gascogne I.G.P.

Côtes du Rhône-Villages A.C.

88/100 Béraut Ampélomeryx 2009

8.25 €

Côtes du Rhône-Villages Cairanne A.C.

88/100 Domaine de Joÿ L'Etoile 2010

4.10 €

86/100 Domaine Alary La Font d'Estévenas 2009 8.00 €

88/100 Domaine de Ménard Colombard -

88/100 Domaine de l'Amauve La Daurée 2010

9.50 €

3.50 €

Sauvignon 2010

Côtes du Ventoux A.C. 86/100 Domaine de Tara Hautes Pierres 2009

10.50 €

87/100 Domaine Chiroulet Terres Blanches 2010

5.65 €

87/100 Domaines François Lurton

Crozes-Hermitage A.C. 89/100 Domaine Pradelle Vintage 2009

9.10 €

4.90 €

Sauvignon blanc 2010 87/100 Vignobles Drieux Colombard -

Hermitage A.C. 89/100 Domaine Betton Vintage 2009

37.00 €

4.50 €

Sauvignon 2010 86/100 Domaine Uby Colombard -

Lirac A.C. 86/100 Cave des Vins de Cru Lirac Arcane 2009

8.90 €

4.35 €

Ugni blanc 2011

Saint-Joseph A.C.

Gaillac A.C.

88/100 Domaine Jean-Claude Marsanne

88/100 Domaine Sarrabelle Vintage 2009 18.00 €

Vintage 2010

Jurançon A.C. 88/100 Domaine Bru-Baché

Vin de Pays de la Principauté d'Orange

15.00 €

Les Casterasses 2006

87/100 Domaine de Dionysos La Devèze 7.20 €

Viognier 2011

8.00 €

Jurançon sec A.C. 88/100 Domaine Cauhapé Sève d'Automne 2009 14.50 €

SAVOY

Monbazillac A.C.

Seyssel A.C.

89/100 Château Vieux Touron

87/100 Maison Mollex Roussette Vieilles Vignes 2009 Vin de Savoie Chautagne A.C. 87/100 Domaine de Chevigneux Vintage 2010

19.00 €

Elevé en barriques 2004 7.50 €

89/100 Château Haut Bernasse Sélection de Grains Nobles 2007

5.10 €

Montravel A.C.

Vin de Savoie Chignin A.C.

87/100 Château Pique-Sègue Vintage 2010

87/100 Domaine Jean-Pierre et Jean-François

Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh Sec A.C.

Quénard Vintage 2010

n/a

22.00 €

89/100 Vignobles Brumont Les Jardins 2009

GILBERT & GAILLARD

4.50 €

n/a

SPRING 2012

ORGANIC NEWS

www.vignobles-gilleslouvet.com

Gilles Louvet: the inventor of organic wine shipping

After being dismissed from a co-operative winery where he was involved in an organic wine project, Gilles Louvet went on to fulfil his dream of creating a company that satisfied his production ethos and at the same time met market requirements for organic wines. Meet this atypical entrepreneur.

Gilles Louvet

ehind Gilles Louvet’s signature wines is a production potential of 700 hectares falling into three different categories. Firstly, his own acreage. The second category is made up of the contract growers bound by 5 - to 10 - year contracts who comply with strict production procedures in the vineyard in areas such as choice of products and harvest dates. In the third category are the growers who do not have a formal, long-term contract but receive advice from Gilles Louvet and a commitment to buy grapes.

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Using such a variety of sources, located mainly in LanguedocRoussillon, and bolstering supplies by spot purchases when necessary allows the firm to respond to distributors with challenging volume requirements. Naturally, this begs the obvious question: is organic wine compatible with large volume sales? “Yes”, explains Gilles Louvet, “because the volumes come from a vast swathe of vineyards stretching from the Pyrénées-Orientales to Orange in the Rhône Valley, from both co-operative and independent wineries.” Depending on the origin and the price-

Gilles Louvet: the inventor of organic wine shipping

positioning of the appellation, the wines will either be classed as “generic” (Languedoc for example) and therefore produced in large quantities, or as premium (Saint Chinian, Côtes du Roussillon, Maury…) and grown on a more boutique scale. Irrespective of provenance, all wines are checked, firstly by the in-house agricultural engineer and then a second time by a certification body (Ecocert) before being marketed.

GILLES LOUVET CANNOT RESIST THE TEMPTATION OF OVERSEEING THE HARVEST

'O' BY GILLES LOUVET, ONE OF THE GILLES LOUVET BRANDS

A RANGE OF STYLES AND APPELLATIONS

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

The most challenging task is to ensure that the 400 or so tanks from which the various labels are created are managed rationally. The real issue is not just about producing large-scale brands but also offering a range of styles and appellations that will meet all types of requirements (or almost), from entry-level Vin de France (ex-cellar price of 2 euros excluding VAT) to a “hand-crafted” appellation wine aged for two years (ex-cellar price of 12 euros excluding VAT). Supplies are therefore “directed” in an extremely pragmatic way: some growers opt for a standard contract with a commitment to buy their grapes or wines, while others prefer an all-inclusive arrangement that not only embraces production aspects but also includes marketing and communication management. As Gilles Louvet stresses: “promoting ourselves is not the top priority, the wine and the producer are pivotal to our communication.” In this instance, bespoke specifications are drawn up, obviously geared to the potential of each site, to ensure that the wines have their own unique personality and are more profitable.

After almost 20 years of hard work, day in, day out, Gilles Louvet now heads up a team of 17 people and has gradually spread his geographical net with a subsidiary company in New York, another in Germany and an office in Japan. The team boasts three wine makers who are tasked with monitoring crops and wine making. Gilles Louvet admits, however, that he still cannot always focus his energy on other areas because he cannot resist the temptation of overseeing the harvest. In his own words: “at harvest time, I have no alternative but to visit the vineyards and the wineries.” Proof if any were needed that underneath the executive suit lies a local man with the same love for wine and his job as on the very first day, back in 1993. Sylvain Patard VIGNOBLES GILLES LOUVET ZA Bonne Source - 30, rue Ernest Cognacq 11100 Narbonne - France Tel. +33 (0)4 68 90 12 80 - www.vignobles-gilleslouvet.com GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

REGION

The Place de Bordeaux: Bordeaux’s wine trade under scrutiny Since wines were first produced in Bordeaux in medieval times, they have been sold through wine merchants via brokers. This way of trading, known as the Place de Bordeaux, still exists today. Is it an ever-changing, efficient model that has brought Bordeaux wines worldwide fame, or an archaic, rigid structure that is past its sell-by date?

hen Laurent Navarre, the commercial director of Libourne’s most famous wine merchants J.P. Moueix, first started working in the wine trade, a well-known British buyer told him that in a year or two there would be no more wine brokers in Bordeaux. That was 25 years ago. Today the Place de Bordeaux still exists with its brokers and merchants; it continues to function, and, according to some, flourish.

WHAT IS THE PLACE DE BORDEAUX?

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

It is the trade of wine between the wine producer who sell via a broker (the courtier) to the wine merchant buyer (the négociant) who then sells on to the world’s markets via a developed distribution network. Some forty years ago the average size of a wine property in Bordeaux was two hectares,

The Place de Bordeaux: Bordeaux’s wine trade under scrutiny

and it made sense for producers, in terms of economy of scale, to sell via specialist merchants. Today, with larger vineyards created by an amalgamation of properties, often owned by institutions, and the push across the world to sell direct and cut out themiddle man, why is this still the case? Firstly we need to understand the unique characteristics of this wine region and the types of wines that are sold within this system.

THE PLACE DE BORDEAUX: A WINE TRADE NETWORK UNIQUE TO BORDEAUX There are currently 10,000 wine producers in the region of Bordeaux, the largest appellation in France, spanning 115,100 hectares (the regions of Champagne and Burgundy have around 30,000 hectares). There are 60 different appellations (producing 50.6 million hectolitres in 2010, representing 3.36 billion euro). Bordeaux is unique in the vast range of wines it presents to the world markets. So how best to sell so many wines across the world, taking into consideration that there are around 16,000 different labels of numerous different vintages at one time on the market?

HOW DOES BORDEAUX’S WINE TRADE WORK? THE ROLE OF THE BROKER The broker (courtier) is the intermediary between seller and buyer, the ‘third man’. There are 100 brokers in Bordeaux who specialise in different areas. They select and propose wines to the wine trade network. They guarantee that the sale contract is correctly fulfilled by both parties, although there is no official document. They oversee more than 80% of the transactions between the wine producer sellers and the merchant buyers. A courtier does not sell, but is rather the middle man who facilitates the business between the grower and négociant. There is no obligation to use courtiers but they are a very useful tool for business. They add value by providing accurate information and knowledge of the market price and the availability of wine on the market. Their main role is to source wine for the merchants (and to sell excess stocks onto the Place de Bordeaux if necessary). Each broker specialises in an area or type of wine and works with several merchants, spreading his economies of scale. It is the broker who has the password to accessing the bank of information of who is holding what stocks where. The merchants pay 2% of the sales value for the quick access to this up-to-date database of information.

THE ROLE OF THE WINE MERCHANT The merchants sell 70% of Bordeaux’s total production to 170 different countries around the world. Each has their own unique sales network. Of the 300 wine merchants in Bordeaux, 25 of the major players represent 80% of the business (Castel,

ALLAN SICHEL, PRESIDENT OF THE UNION DE MAISONS DE BORDEAUX

Grand Chai de France, Ginestet, CIVBG). There are 15 to 20 middle-sized merchants such as Maison Sichel, Moueix, Borie-Manoux and Mahler-Besse). All are different and specialise in different types of wines and markets. They perform several different roles in addition to promoting and selling in France and abroad, including selecting wines, blending, bottling, holding stocks and ageing wines for future release.

WHICH WINES ARE SOLD ON THE PLACE DE BORDEAUX? There are three main types of wine sold on the Place de Bordeaux; all of the famous Grand Cru Classé are sold this way, as well as some of the smaller individual châteaux wines who supply their wines in bottle, and as bulk wines to be made up into merchant’s brands. The Place de Bordeaux works in different ways to sell these different types of wines. It is an open system where the simple market rules of supply and demand regulate prices naturally across the world’s markets. GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

REGION

THE POINTS OF VIEW OF THE PLAYERS INVOLVED Allan Sichel, president of the’Union de Maisons de Bordeaux which groups the 300 merchants in Bordeaux explains: “It is possible theoretically for a grand cru property to bypass the Place de Bordeaux, but there is no logic in doing so. It is a powerful tool for distributing these châteaux wines throughout the world and is essential for brand exposure, image and prestige.” Bernard Magrez only sells his Graves Grand Cru Classé, Pessac Léognan and Château Pape Clément via the Place de Bordeaux, despite having a sales team that sells the wines from his 30 or so other properties around the world.

Jean-Jacques Bonnie from Château Malartic-Lagravière (Graves Grand Cru Classé, Pessac Léognan) describes being part of this ancient system as having an “eclectic distribution all over the world, with a permanent re-evaluation of the price of your wine on the Place de Bordeaux, with little chance for any ‘sleeping’ or stuck stocks of wine.”

Jean-Jacques Bonnie - Château Malartic-Lagravière

“YOU HAVE A PERMANENT REEVALUATION OF THE PRICE OF YOUR WINE ON THE PLACE DE BORDEAUX”

THE GRAND CRU CLASSE ELITE There are approximately 150 Grand Cru elite wines produced in the region of Bordeaux, which represent only 4% of the volume produced but 20% of the value. These include the properties classified in 1855 in the Haut Médoc and Sauternes, the Premier Grand Cru Classés of St Emilion, top Pomerols, and Pessac-Léognan’s Grand Cru Classé wines. Many of these wines are sold en primeur, as futures, only a few months after the harvest, with deferred delivery after their ageing in barrel has been completed some two years later. All these wines are sold on the Place de Bordeaux. There are some 150 merchants who specialise in this market and who compete on the Place de Bordeaux to gain allocation. Each of these wines is sold by a number of different négociants.

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Antony Barton of Château Léoville-Barton (2nd Growth, St Julien) thinks that the margin he loses to the 100 or so merchants who sell his wine world-wide is well worth it as it leaves him and his team to focus on what they do well, making the wine: "It says it all that Philippe de Rothschild sold Mouton Cadet direct but chose to sell Mouton-Rothschild on the Place de Bordeaux."

THE SMALLER CHATEAUX This is a range of wines from smaller properties from across the region, representing a number of different terroirs that are normally estate-bottled. Eighty percent of these wines are sold via the Place de Bordeaux. There is a new generation of wine producers who more able to communicate in different languages, and who are adept at social networking both online and off; these individuals are travelling around the world, trying to sell direct and thus benefit from the higher prices they can attain for their wines. There are grants from bodies such as France Agrimer, and associations such as Ubifrance who organise trade fairs, to help them do so.

FRANCK AND LAURENCE MOUREAU, CHÂTEAU BÉARD LA CHAPELLE, ST EMILION GRAND CRU www.beardlachapelle.com Representing the ninth generation to run their family property, this young brother and sister team sell their wine worldwide via négociants but admit that “it is essential for us to be able to sell at least 70% of our wine direct to buyers in markets such as China, USA and Brazil. Our future is via these direct distribution channels.”

REGION

work more with négociants to benefit from their extended distribution network.”

YVES RAYMOND, CHÂTEAU SARANSOT-DUPRÉ, LISTRAC www.saransot-dupre.com “I currently sell all of my wines direct but do not have the time or contacts in certain markets. Working exclusively with a négociant on such markets is the only way the Place de Bordeaux could work for me. I can appreciate the merchant’s reticence in building a following for a wine in a particular market, only to be undercut by someone else. That is why I would look to work in exclusivity on a market such as the USA where the négociant would ‘work' my wine.”

ALLAN SICHEL, NÉGOCIANT MAISON SICHEL www.maisonsichel.com “There is no need to be exclusive with a single distribution network - they can, and often do, complement each other. All sales channels have a legitimate raison d’être. The most important consideration in this case is that the pricing structure has to make sense. If the producer sells 20% of his wine direct to the consumer in a market for say 6 euros, and the rest of the wine is sold via the merchants, they also need to be able to sell it © ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

for 6 euros. There needs to be coherence. It is important for

Yves Raymond - Château Saransot-Dupré

“I CURRENTLY SELL ALL OF MY WINES DIRECT BUT DO NOT HAVE THE TIME OR CONTACTS IN CERTAIN MARKETS“

the producer himself to drive his own sales strategy using the different sales channels.”

THE CHANGING FACE OF THE PLACE DE BORDEAUX Allan Sichel thinks that during the past four or five years, there has been a new, more modern approach which has led to the Place de Bordeaux becoming more adept at adapting to changing market situations, driven primarily, he believes, to the younger generation helped by globalization and more transparent pricing due to the internet. Today, top ‘foreign’

PIERRE REBAUD, CHÂTEAU GABY, FRONSAC www.chateau-dugaby.com

de Bordeaux by specialised brokers on the worldwide markets

“For négociants to be interested, wines need to come from

- proof perhaps that the Place de Bordeaux is an effective way

sought-after appellations or already have an established brand

of selling top-end wines around the world. Sichel summarises:

and following. Unfortunately this is not the case normally

“The Place de Bordeaux is not a rigid structure, there are no

with appellations such as Fronsac. We have to work hard to

fixed rules. It is based on good sense, the shaking of the hand,

create a name for Château Gaby via active communication and

trust and loyalty based on the long-term, a system that has

educating the end consumer. This is done via the internet, and we

worked over the centuries. We continue with it not because we

welcome visitors to our beautiful location overlooking the

have to, or that we cannot do it differently, it keeps on going

Dordogne and sell our wines to them. We currently sell 80%

because it is the best way in Bordeaux to do business and no-one

of our production direct, mainly abroad, but would like to

has invented a better way.”

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

wines from Chile and Italy for example are sold via the Place

The Place de Bordeaux: Bordeaux’s wine trade under scrutiny

WINE MERCHANTS SELLING GRANDS CRUS CLASSÉS TO CONSUMERS www.barriere-freres.com

BORDEAUX TRADITION

BARRIERE FRERES

Château Desmirail, an 1855-ranked 3rd growth Margaux

LA BORDELAISE DES GRANDS VINS BORIE MANOUX

www.borie-manoux.com

BOURNAZEL & CIE

www.bournazeletcie.fr

BRUSINA -BRANDLER

www.herve-duboscq.fr

CHATEAU CLASSIC -

www.chateauclassic.com

Le Monde des Grands Bordeaux CIE MEDOCAINE DES GRANDS CRUS www.medocaine.com CLARENCE DILLON WINES

www.clarendelle.com

H. CUVELIER & FILS

www.cuvelier-bordeaux.com

MAISON JEAN DESCAVES

www.descaves.fr

DIVA BORDEAUX

www.divawine.com

DUBOS FRERES & CIE

www.dubos.com

GROUPE DUCLOT/ AMARCORD (Filiales de Videlot) ROBERT GIRAUD

www.robertgiraud.com

GRANDISSIME

www.grandissime.com

HOREAU-BEYLOT & CIE

www.horeau-beylot.fr

NATH. JOHNSTON & FILS

www.nath-johnston.com

JOLLIOT PAULIN MÄHLER-BESSE

www.mahler-besse.com

MAISON MALET ROQUEFORT

www.maletroquefort.com

CHEVAL QUANCARD

www.chevalquancard.com

MILLESIMA

www.millesima.com

MAISON QUIEN & Cie

www.quien-wines.com

LES VINS DE PIERRE MONTAGNAC

www.montagnac.com

PHILIPPE RAOUX

www.winery.fr

J.J.MORTIER & Cie

www.mortier.com

UNION VINICOLE DE GASCOGNE

www.unionvinicole.com

VEYRET LATOUR

www.veyret-latour.com

OENOALLIANCE OENOTEX

www.oenotex.com

VIGNOBLES INTERNATIONAUX

PROVINO

www.provino-bordeaux.com

THE WINE MERCHANT

www.the-wine-merchant.com

It seems that the system continues to work in different ways

négociants who take an automatic 15 to 20% margin. “But

for the variousplayers involved. Let us finish with the sentiments

above all I have immense respect for the history, the loyalty,

of someone from the next link in the chain, the largest buyer of

that a man’s word is his bond, a deal is a deal. … I love the

classified Bordeaux, London wine merchants Berry Bros. & Rudd.

wines of Bordeaux, most of the châteaux and négociants, and

Over hundreds of years of relations developed directly with

the whole infuriating, confusing, bewildering and charming

the châteaux of Bordeaux, Simon Staples admits that there is

system! Bring on those 2011s!” Nicolle Croft

some reticence in having to buy the Grand Cru wines via the GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

QUALITY FACTORS

Chardonnay in Blanc de Blancs Champagne: a diamond of C’s

With white cut-out landscapes and cellars, from white snow-covered vines in winter and white flowers in spring, to strings of white pearls lacing the neck of a flute, Champagne just feels... white. BY

AMANDA REGAN

COLOUR Blanc de Blancs translates as white wine from white grapes, and refers specifically to the white grape of Chardonnay used exclusively to make Champagne, in the Champagne region. Although two of the three predominant grape varieties used in

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Champagne are red, the juice from Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier when pressed, like that of Chardonnay, is white. Therefore, Champagne made from red or white grapes is white, unless the intention is to make a pink Rosé, which often has a proportion of Chardonnay in the blend.

Chardonnay in Blanc de Blancs Champagne: a diamond of C’s

CLARITY Subtle hues of salmons and pale pinks can result from pigments after gentle pressing of red grape skins. Even if made from 100% Chardonnay grapes, these Champagnes range in colour from crystal clear to golden tones depending on vintage variation, ripeness and bottle age. Chardonnay is very adaptable to climate and site conditions, from very warm regions to Champagne’s extreme septentrional limit. This cool climate creates conditions for Chardonnay to be cut like a diamond with a pure, clear, flawless expression that reflects extra dimensions, without the appearance or taste of opaque ripeness in its colour and flavour.

CARAT Less than 5% of all Champagnes are Blanc de Blancs. As Chardonnay represents the smallest surface area of Champagne viticole (28%) compared to Pinot Noir (39%) and Pinot Meunier (33%), it is the most rare and, like precious stones, is therefore in demand. Chardonnay is often used in a proportion of roughly one third in non-vintage blends, and up to 50% or more in a vintage or prestige cuvée blend. Chardonnay in Blanc de Blancs Champagne is particularly fine, elegant and light, offering minerality, delicate aromas, floral notes, citrus and raw nuts when young. Chardonnay is ideal for long, slow ageing, transforming with maturity into pastry and toasted nut secondary and tertiary characters, while still retaining persistence and freshness.

CUT The unique combination of chalk soils and cool climate create Chardonnay wines with focus, precision, intensity and length. Chardonnay buds burst earlier and matures later than Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, needing roughly one week more sunshine to fully ripen than Pinot Noir. Styled from fresh, light, low dosage apéritifs, Blanc de Blancs can be paired with first courses of seafood and shellfish; in its more vinous guise it can accompany the main course, and when sweetened, matched with desserts. Blanc de Blancs evolve from an austere character when young to greater complexity with age, whether non-vintage, vintage or prestige cuvées, single vineyard, village or blended crus, bottle-aged or recently disgorged. Blanc de Blancs styles vary depending on the influence of the growing season and year, the location of the vineyard, and the winemaking influence e.g. e of stainless steel or oak, malolactic fermentation, blending, reserve wines, dosage and time spent ageing on lees.

BLANC DE BLANCS SETTINGS Champagne is divided into four main growing regions: Montagne de Reims, Vallée de la Marne, Côte des Blancs and Côte des Bar. In the shape of a diamond, the Chardonnay growing areas of Champagne could be cut between four points: Reims, Château-Thierry, Vitry-le-Francois and Montgueux. Most soils are chalky limestone, with marl and sandy soils in Montagne de Reims and the Marne Valley where Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier dominate. Chardonnay needs regular hydration and drainage, therefore when it is grown on chalk soils it has great influence. Blanc de Blancs find their major expression in the Côte des Blancs. Dominated by chalk, the Grand Cru villages of Cramant, Chouilly, Avize, Oger and Mesnil sur Oger produce

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

QUALITY FACTORS

The fantastic Clos du Mesnil is a real ambassador for the Côte des Blancs

Salon produces one of the most famous Chardonnay in Champagne

... BLANC DE BLANCS PRESTIGE CUVÉE AND VINTAGE CHAMPAGNES

... GROWERS AND COOPERATIVE WINERIES 100% BLANC DE BLANCS CUVÉE

KRUG CLOS DU MESNIL SALON “S” ROEDERER BLANC DE BLANCS DEUTZ AMOUR DE DEUTZ HEIDSIECK BLANC DES MILLENAIRES TAITTINGER COMTES DE CHAMPAGNE MUMM DE CRAMANT HENRIOT SOUVERAIN BILLECART SALMON BRUT BLANC DE BLANCS JACQUESSON AVIZE, AND 2002 RELEASED LIEU DITS RUINART DOM RUINART POL ROGER BLANC DE BLANC MILLLESIME AYALA BLANC DE BLANCS PHILIPPONNAT GRAND BLANC GOSSET GRAND BLANC DE BLANCS

DE SOUZA (AVIZE) - CUVEE DES CAUDALIES

extreme types of Champagnes, sometimes austere, but reserve intense emotions for lovers of this style. The Premier Crus villages of Cuis and Vertus have exceptional Chardonnay vineyards arguably worthy of Grand Cru status for some growers. Outside the Côte des Blancs there are pockets of Chardonnay vineyards that produce Blanc de Blancs with reputation: if we take Le Mesnil sur Oger in the Côte des Blancs as the centre point of our Chardonnay diamond, highlighted along its north-south axis is Villers-Marmery on the east of the Montage de Reims, Aÿ in the Marne Valley, and Montgueux in the Aube. Due to the diversity of these microclimates, viticultural practices are adapted to make

A selection of...

A selection of 100%...

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

FRANCK BONVILLE (AVIZE) - BELLES VOYES MICHEL GONET (AVIZE) - PRESTIGE 1998 PHILIPPE GLAVIER (CRAMANT) - BLANC DE BLANCS P. LANCELOT ROYER (CRAMANT) - CUVEE DES CHEVALIERS PIERRE GIMONNET (CUIS) - CUVEE FLEURON 2006 CLAUDE CAZALS (LE MESNIL SUR OGER) - CLOS CAZALS LE MESNIL (LE MESNIL SUR OGER) - PRESTIGE 2004 PHILIPPE GONET (LE MESNIL SUR OGER) - BELEMN ITA 2004 PIERRE PETERS (LE MESNIL SUR OGER) - LES CHETILLONS 2004 PAUL BERTHELOT (DIZY) - BRUT LA MARQUISE G. GRUET (BETHON) - BRUT BLANC DE BLANCS LE BRUN DE NEUVILLE (BETHON) - CUVEE CHARDONNAY JACQUES CHAPUT (ARRENTIERES) - BLANC DE BLANCS

well-framed, fine Blanc de Blancs with fruit aromas that range from white citrus flowers to dried or even tropical fruits.

CÔTE DES BLANCS, LE MESNIL SUR OGER Wine expert Michael Edwards has called Le Mesnil sur Oger “the Corton-Charlemagne of the Côte des Blancs.” The 99% Grand Crus Chardonnay vineyards face east and rise from relatively slight slopes that average eight degrees and become steeper to more than 40 degrees at the top. The chalk is light, pure and porous to 40%, with sponge-like water retention capacity for thermal and hydric

Chardonnay in Blanc de Blancs Champagne: a diamond of C’s

CUIS AND VERTUS HAVE EXCEPTIONAL CHARDONNAY VINEYARDS ARGUABLY WORTHY OF GRAND CRU STATUS regulation. The village has 446 growers, 428 hectares of Chardonnay vines out of a total 430, with 1% of Pinot Noir. Edwards has praised the “lucky Yves and Nicole Moncuit,” proprietors of family-run grower Champagne Pierre Moncuit in Le Mesnil sur Oger for “their talent... as big as their birthright” and “excellent quality range of extremely incisive Blanc de Blancs of great class.” The Moncuits have managed about 20 hectares for over a century now. “Our vineyard is relatively old, and it’s our decision to not renew entirely because we estimate that the age of our vines is a guarantee of expression and of typicity,” says daugher Nicole Moncuit. “Our vines from Mesnil terroir express a great minerality, with citrus aromas, brioches, butter, and notes of white flowers.” Nicole describes the Cuvée Pierre Moncuit-Delos Réserve Brut 100% Grand Cru Blanc de Blancs from Mesnil sur Oger as “elegant, dry, long, round and persistent, light and lively, perfect from apéritif to the end of the meal.” Ageing is important, and the dosage is adapted to each cuvée. “The other particularity of our house is that we always work on only one harvest in bottle, and the same is true for our non- vintages.”

COTE DE SÉZANNE Chardonnay from the Côte de Sézanne grows on gentler slopes with outcrop deposits of same pure chalk fifteen kilometres south-west of the Côte des Blancs. There are no Grand or premier Cru villages, however, the grapes are riper and offer more approachable characters in Blanc de Blancs Champagnes, or in blends. GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

QUALITY FACTORS

PREMIER CRUS VILLAGES 100% CHARDONNAY VERTUS, CUIS, GRAUVES, VILLENEUVE-RENNEVILLE, BERGERES-LES-VERTUS ATYPICAL VILLAGES WITH CHARDONNAY

CÔTE DES BLANCS MEANS CHARDONNAY

MONTAGNE DE REIMS VILLERS-MARMERY AND TREPAIL (1ER CRUS) MARNE VALLEY AY (GRAND CRU) TOURS-SUR-MARNE (GRAND CRU)

Tom Stevenson says that Chardonnay from the Côte de Sézanne is “much more precocious, with attractive, tropical fruit flavours” that can be “quite exotic and musky” compared with the Côte des Blancs. With 1064 hectares and 75% of the total 1457 hectares grown in the twelve villages of the Sézannais, Chardonnay is the principal grape variety beside 5% Pinot Meunier and 20% Pinot Noir.

AUBE MONTGUEUX MARNE VITRY-LE-FRANCOIS MOST EASTERN IN MARNE PLANTED MOSTLY WITH CHARDONNAY

FOUR REGIONS IN CHAMPAGNE

319 villages

The villages Saudoy, Chantemerle and Montgenost have small vineyard plantings but a high 93% average of Chardonnay.

32.178 ha

% Chardonnay

% Pinot Meunier

% Pinot Noir

Montagne de Reims (and Massif de Saint-Thierry)

101

7.960

24%

Marne Valley

11.232

16%

Côte des Blancs (and Sézannais)

6.169

82%

Côte des Bar

6.817

The village of Bethon at 150 metres altitude in the heart of the Côte grows the most Chardonnay with 89% over 174 of 194 total hectares of vines.

AUBE, MONTGUEUX

A CLUSTER OF CHARDONNAY WITH EXTRAORDINARY PURITY

Nicknamed the Montrachet of Champagne, the Seine Valley slopes are home to the vineyards of Jacques Lessaigne, located some hundred kilometres south of Epernay, where Chardonnays are riper and richer. The vineyard island of Montgueux overlooks Troyes from a 209-metre hilltop, five kilometres to the west. This was the vineyard of the Comtes de Champagne in the Middle Ages. Relatively steep chalk slopes face south east and the grapes are naturally ripened by the sun. Chardonnay from Montgueux is highly sought after by negociant houses in Reims. Montgueux is surrounded by cereal crops in a regional sea planted with Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. While Chardonnay represents only 7% of total plantings in the Aube, there are 74 exploitants in Montgueux, with 88%

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Chardonnay in Blanc de Blancs Champagne: a diamond of C’s

Nicole Moncuit

THE MONCUITS HAVE MANAGED ABOUT 20 HECTARES FOR OVER A CENTURY NOW

Chardonnay covering 198.2 hectares. Anne Velut of Champagne Jean Velut in Montgueux explains that “the difference between our Blanc de Blancs and, for example, those of the Côte de Blancs is that our soil is crayeux, but with quite a lot of veins of clay depending on the parcels. This clay determines the taste of each base wine, so we take care to vinify each parcel separately. This gives us a greater palette of various tastes and allows nuances in the blends.” The chalk also contains silex which modifies the taste of the Champagnes a little, “especially the vintages, where the ageing allows the expression of the ‘gout de terroir.’”

MONTAGNE DE REIMS, VILLERS MARMERY On the east of the semi-circular Montagne de Reims that is distinguished by slopes facing in various directions favouring Pinot Noir, the village of Villers-Marmery is an exception. Planted with 95 % Chardonnay, together with neighbouring Chardonnay-dominant villages Trepail and Vaudemanges, there are in total 600 hectares of Chardonnay. Villers Continued on page 65 GILBERT & GAILLARD

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QUALITY FACTORS

THE SELECT BLEND was absent. The right-hand corner was bent over if one had come in person. The Blanc de Blancs Mumm de Cramant label harks back to this tradition and acts as the House’s calling card. Originally reserved for the firm’s circle of friends, this amazing blend is now available in limited quantities at specialist wine merchants and on the tables of the most prominent chefs.

BOUGHT BACK IN 1882, the vineyard at Cramant has a very specific purpose. It is used to make a unique blend reserved for friends of the House and select customers: the Blanc de Blancs, Mumm de Cramant. Made from meticulously selected Chardonnay grapes sourced exclusively from the Cramant site, this Blanc de Blancs has a particular resonance with connoisseurs for its amazing purity. Its clipped label is one of its more unusual features. In the 19th century, it was customary to leave a business card if the host

INTERVIEW WITH DIDIER MARIOTTI, HEAD CELLARMASTER AT G.H. MUMM Mumm de Cramant is crafted in a slightly unusual way with grapes sourced from a single vineyard rather than a blend. Does this make it easier to achieve consistency in terms of style? The Blanc de Blancs Mumm de Cramant is a blend of various tanks of wines from Cramant so it is no harder or easier than for the cuvée.

How does the Mumm de Cramant achieve such great finesse? The Blanc de Blancs Mumm de Cramant’s great finesse comes from a deliberately shorter ageing period. This ensures that it retains freshness and lower pressure (just 4.5kg) than most Champagnes allowing its delicate effervescence and a measure of unctuosity to fully reveal themselves.

Didier Mariotti

Why is the vintage not stated? The blend deliberately undergoes a shorter ageing period to preserve its freshness which is why we decided not to state the vintage. Gilbert & Gaillard

GOSSET TOO... Although the firm has recently moved partly to Epernay, the brand has always had its roots in Aÿ and has traditionally been attached to Pinot blends (Noir and Meunier). A few years ago, though, it took the plunge with a new Blanc de Blancs. Cellar master Jean-Pierre Mareignier patiently prepared for the new arrival and the result fully lives up to his expectations. Sourced from fifteen or so different sites (including Avize, Chouilly, Cramant, Le Mesnil sur Oger, Oger and Cuis in the Côte des blancs and Tour sur Marne, Trépail and Villers-Marmery in the Montagne de Reims), the blend (Gilbert & Gaillard score: 95/100)

and an almond note. The style is ethereal with a very compelling freshness and lingering finish. It is fashioned with the same excellence as the House’s other blends. For more information: www.champagne-gosset.com

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

displays remarkable purity and refined expression with aromas of white flowers, white fruits

Chardonnay in Blanc de Blancs Champagne: a diamond of C’s

92 /100

89 /100

CHAMPAGNE Michel Gonet Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Prestige 1998

91 /100

CHAMPAGNE Franck Bonville Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Les Belles Voyes

Old gold. Evolved, profound nose expressing patisserie aromatics (cake, toasted almond), dried fruit and walnuts. Remarkably fresh palate showing a seductively refined texture, a full, melted entry and clean finish. A superlative Champagne.

Bright pale gold. Idiosyncratic nose marrying violet, a buttery note and wonderful minerality. The palate reveals surprising vinosity, fullness and exuberance. Melted, almost creamy across the palate and showing seductive volume and persistency. A Champagne with character.

CHAMPAGNE P. Lancelot-Royer Cuvée des Chevaliers

CHAMPAGNE Pierre Moncuit Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru

89 /100

Light yellow. A mix of floral notes, white-fleshed fruits and a touch of almond on the nose. The palate shows full body and finesse with a fleshy attack and a wonderful mid-palate that lingers on and on. Fine-grained texture. A fresh, elegant Champagne finishing on a subtle toasted note.

Light yellow. Delicately floral and fruity nose (hazelnut, almond, mirabelle plum). Fleshy, easy-drinking palate with a refined texture. Fresh and closely-integrated across the palate. A very pleasant dry Champagne drinking well as an aperitif or for a party.

CHAMPAGNE G. Gruet et Fils Brut Blanc de Blancs Pale yellow with greenish tints. Delicate nose showing floral aromas augmented by buttery notes. Fresh, creamy palate with wonderful aromatic precision. An honest, ethereal Blanc de Blancs that would make a perfect appetiser.

CHAMPAGNE Jacques Chaput Brut Blanc de Blancs Light yellow with greenish tints. Enticing nose merging brioche-like notes with touches of almond and a lemony note. The palate shows a seductive creamy texture, refined bubbles and freshness. Persistent across the palate. A lovely Blanc de Blancs for pre-dinner drinks.

FULL CONTACT DETAILS FOR THESE ESTATES CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE 114

/100

Marmery has 136 growers, and 238 hectares of Chardonnay out of a total 243.1 hectares of vines. Profiting from east- and south-east facing slopes, Chardonnay is planted on deeper chalk soils here than in the Côte des Blancs. Grown on clay limestone, marl and sandy soils, the wines have characteristic finesse, minerality and natural acidity, with a biggerbodied, rounder and fruitier, tropical touch. Founded in the 1920s, Champagne A. Margaine is a fourthgeneration family grower with six hectares of vines on Villers Marmery terroir. Today they protect this terroir with new principles of viticulture and soil management, and care. Planted on a bed of very deep, poor soil on chalk rock, the roots plunge deep seeking moisture and heat: “the vines express all the

/100

CHAMPAGNE Paul Berthelot Brut La Marquise Light yellow. Distinctive, expressive nose with creamy, brioche-like and fruity accents. Full mouthfeel with a refined, melted texture. Fairly powerful yet balanced by a touch of freshness. An opulent Blanc de Blancs that shows real food compatibility with fish.

potential alchemy of grapes and terroir, suited above all to Chardonnay” explains Arnaud Margaine. Malolactic fermentation is prevented to preserve freshness of fruit. Margaine experiments with ageing vins clairs in three- to four-year-old used Burgundy barrels. With large amounts of reserve wines in cellars, stored in bottles not stainless steel since 2005 for freshness and vigour, 20% reserve wine is used for blending and balance. Dosage is also stored in oak barrels for added character. The percentage of grapes in the Cuvée Traditional Brut reflects the proportion in the vineyards: 90% Chardonnay for freshness and bouquet and floral notes, and 10% Pinot Noir, creating an apéritif style. Champagne A. Margain joined the Special Club in 1977. This Blanc de Blancs is only ever a vintage Champagne, made from three parcels of Chardonnay vines averaging 35 years, then aged for three years sur lees in caves: it is “the perfect expression of the terroir of Villers Marmery,” the “fleuron” of the house, indeed, their diamond. GILBERT & GAILLARD

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REGION

Miraculous Rioja wines Rioja is one of the two Denominaciónes de Origen Calificadas in Spain (the other being Priorato). This qualification is all the more deserved because Rioja wines - joven, crianza, reserva or gran reserva are always an enjoyable experience.

DIEGO BONNEL

considered to be classic style Rioja.

A LITTLE HISTORY

The beginning of the 20th century saw

Rioja (from the second half of the 19th century onwards), the wine-producing region's relationship with France has played a key role in the development of

the USA, and the first Spanish regulatory body was created in 1926. In the 1950s and 1969s, when Spain opened up as a tourism destination, new export markets

the whole region in two ways. In the 1850s and beyond, an increased cooperation developed between Rioja and Bordeaux. French oenologists and technicians brought their knowledge to their Spanish counterparts in Rioja, making them change the style of their wines from almost pale, coffee-coloured wines, due to the overuse of oak, to something more balanced. At a time when French vineyards, particularly in Bordeaux, were struck by mildew and above all by phylloxera, imported wines were very much in demand.

Rioja exports develop, particularly to

These “new style” Riojas

suited the French palate perfectly and thus the producers at the time had

Diego Bonnel has long experience in the international wine sector, as well as in strategic management and supply chain management. For more than 25 years, he has put his passion for wine and his expertise in winemaking and exporting to use as a consultant, advising both winemakers and public bodies. He travels extensively in many wineproducing countries, meeting wine experts including winemakers, oenologists and sommeliers. Tasting thousands of wines each year, he is particularly knowledgeable about Iberian wines. He currently lives in Madrid, where he heads the Spanish and Portuguese G&G office.

developed, this time in northern Europe, with the UK being added to the list of Rioja-importing countries in the 1970s. A new change in the style of the wines came also at that time, thanks to the introduction of stainless steel tanks and the more precise use of oak, backed by a change in legislation which introduced new rules controlling the length of time the wine should be in oak. The four main types of Rioja wines are described in the table on the next page. From cosecha to Gran Reserva, Rioja will suit almost all occasion and pair with almost every kind of dish.

their first taste of export sales - until of

Modern times have seen a group of

course French wine production resu-

innovative producers introduce changes

med and they stopped buying. Oddly enough, what was

in the style of the wines - changes that will be commented

then thought of as an innovative wine is now part of what is

upon later in this article. Continued on page 68

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Miraculous Rioja wines

THREE REGIONS IN ONE: RIOJA ALTA (43% OF ALL VINEYARDS), RIOJA ALAVESA (20%) AND RIOJA BAJA (37%)

THE FOUR MAIN TYPES OF RIOJA WINES

TYPE OF WINE

DESCRIPTION

YOUNG WINE

Can go through some oak ageing or not, depending on the winemaker’s decision; these wines are usually released in the spring following the vintage.

CRIANZA

Red wines must spend a minimum of 12 months in oak casks and another twelve in the bodega, either in bottle or in tanks, or a combination of the two. White and Rosado wines must spend at least 6 months in oak and another 6 in bottle.

RESERVA

Red wines must spend three years in the bodega, of which 12 months in oak casks. White and Rosado wines must spend 6 months in oak casks and two years in the bodega.

GRAN RESERVA

Made in exceptional vintages, the wines must spend 24 months in oak casks and 36 months in bottle. For white and Rosado wines, the minimum ageing period is 48 months, with at least 12 months in casks.

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

REGION

THREE REGIONS IN ONE Rioja is a viticultural region with 63,500 hectares under vine, grouping together 600 bodegas, 18,000 winegrowers and 120,000 plots, all of which are thoroughly identified and characterised by the Consejo Regulador (Rioja’s regulatory body). This expanse of vineyards is divided into three different areas: Rioja Alta (43% of all vineyards), Rioja Alavesa (20%) and Rioja Baja (37%).

GRAPES AT THE SERVICE OF A NOBLE CAUSE As far as red varieties are concerned, the Tempranillo grape is by far the most widely planted, representing more than 75% of all vineyards. Apart from Tempranillo, other varieties are used and usually blended with it: Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano. Tempranillo is a good base for Rioja wine: it b r i n g s a fair alcohol level (around 13%) and when yields

Globally speaking, Rioja Alta and Rioja Alavesa have an Atlantic climate while Rioja Baja - the most easterly area - has a more Mediterranean type of climate. Tempranillo is mainly grown in Rioja Alta, along with Mazuelo and Graciano in the hotter areas. Rioja Alavesa is the perfect place for Tempranillo, while Rioja Baja is favourable to Garnacha.

matter and polyphenols to make a very interesting wine.

However, just as a single note of music does not make a symphony, Tempranillo goes well with Garnacha, which gives strength and warmth (alcohol levels can reach 16%) and Mazuelo, also known as Cariñena in other regions of S p a i n , particularly Priorat. Mazuelo brings acidity and tannins, adding some extra ageing potential to the wines. Graciano in turn will bring more structure and sharpness to the final blend.

Soils, climate and vine exposure are quite different: soils are clay-based and often alluvial in the north, while iron- and chalk-rich outcrops can be found in Rioja Alta and Rioja Alavesa. In short, a passionate winemaker from Rioja can here work with many nuances and make his or her own particular interpretation of this outstanding terroir.

are reasonable (around 55 hl/ha or less), enough colouring

RIOJA, A DIVERSE REGION PRODUCING ENCHANTING WINES

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Miraculous Rioja wines

THE GEOLOGY OF THE REGION IS MARKED BY THE RIVER EBRO AND ITS TRIBUTARIES

When it comes to white wines, Viura (called Macabeo in

intertwined with them - are sub-zonal wines (coming from a

north-eastern Spain) and Malvasía are the two cornerstones

single sub-region), finca wines (single estate) or pago wine

that are part of the traditional blends. Viura (added to red

(single vineyard). Some mono-varietal wines, based on secon-

wines to give them some extra acidity and brightness) has a

dary grapes, are part of the viticultural landscape: 100%

strong personality and complexity. Malvasía will bring longer

Graciano, Mazuelo or Garnacha bottles can be found, even

ageing capacity as well as more weight and a good marriage

though they are not the most common kind of wines.

with oak barrels. Garnacha Blanca is another traditional grape used in blends. The novelty comes from the recent introduction of Verdejo, and a couple of international, very famous varieties:

LEADING DOMAINES

Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. The first whites from these

If we were to cite one “classic” domaine in La Rioja, it might

grapes are still to reach the market and we will need to watch

be López de Heredia, with its Tondonia range: these are wines

this space to find out how well they sell.

that spend a long time in wood, with their traditional garnet hue. In fact it is the last, probably the only winery in Spain to maintain its own cooperage. Marqués de Murrieta, Marqués

WINE STYLES

de Riscal and Compañía Vinícola del Norte de España can also

The style of the wines is definitely marked by legislation and

be cited; these were the wineries that launched the Bordeaux

the length of time wines spend in wood and in bottle. Joven

chateau-style Riojas in the 1850s.

Rioja is fresh, fruity and vibrant; crianza is a more serious wine, the teenager of the family, just starting to discover some

At the other end of the spectrum, there are wineries and

composure after troubled times. Reserva is the adult wine,

winemakers such as Allende, Roda, Sierra Cantabria or

with a story to tell and some thoughts to share with the drinker.

Benjamin Romeo and Miguel Merino. They all have strict

Gran Reserva is the grand-father, the elderly member, bringing

vineyard management practices, rigorous grape selection, long

wisdom and peace. Besides these styles - and sometimes

macerations and barrel fermentation, for red as well as white wines. Continued on page 70

GILBERT & GAILLARD

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REGION

An interview with the President of the Consejo Regulador de Rioja, DIEGO BONNEL: What are the main challenges facing Rioja nowadays? VÍCTOR PASCUAL: As you know, as a wine region producing around 320 350 million bottles per year, one of the main challenges is to assure consistent quality for the entire production. This is what the Consejo Regulador is achieving: no underperforming wine Víctor Pascual, president of the Consejo Regulador, Rioja’s regulatory body leaves any bodega with the seal of approval of the Consejo. We are constantly reinforcing the brand Rioja, which partly explains why we are so well-known abroad.

DB: How do you see Rioja evolve in the future? VP: It will evolve according to our ambitious strategic plan for the period 2005 - 2020, based on three main objectives: continue to guarantee that all our Riojas are of undisputable quality, strengthen the image of our wines sold in the upper segments of the market, and increase our international presence. We currently export 23% of our total production and our goal is to reach 50% in 2020, which seems quite achievable if we maintain our current increase in international sales. 70

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SPRING 2012

DB: How would you define the soul of Rioja wines? VP: Rioja is a flexible and versatile wine: it is always there when you need it and can adapt to every situation. In that sense, it is a friendly wine. Styles and cuvées are so different that it is possible to find exactly the right pairing when preparing a meal. I think this is the true style of Rioja: it is both an everyday companion, and the perfect guest for a special occasion.

Mr. Víctor Pascual.

LIKE WINES, EACH LANDSCAPE HAS ITS OWN PERSONALITY Finally, in between these two opposing styles, there are names like Marqués de Vargas, Mayor de Migueloa and even Rioja Alta, a bodega which is not afraid to experiment and which has progressively introduced an element of modernity to its wines. No doubt we will soon have the occasion to return to the fascinating world of Rioja wines and their different styles. ■

Now available!

NEW EDITION ● 9626 pages ● 3,300 Wines presented ● ● 280 Bordeaux vintage 2010 ● 350 Organic wines ● ● Great Italian and American wines ● DISTRIBUTION: Bookmasters (USA-Canada) - Orca-Vinehouse (United Kingdom Ireland, East Europa, Japan, China) PUBLICATION DATE: November 2011

e are delighted to present the 2012 Gilbert & Gaillard Wine Guide. All the wines featured have been tasted using the same protocol, ensuring a rigorous, impartial selection. The samples sent by producers are blind tasted by

Gilbert & Gaillard and their team in the quiet seclusion of a tasting room. A 100 point scale is employed for utmost accuracy. There is no question of marathon tastings as no more than 10-15 samples are tasted per session to maintain fair judgement and analysis. More than 3,300 wines have been selected, along with commentaries, tasting notes and recommendations on how to serve them. All the classed growths and most prestigious wines are featured, but there are also many smaller, lesser-known wine growers to discover too. Each wine growing region is represented, together with a detailed map and every appellation is closely analysed, with commentaries.The Gilbert & Gaillard Wine Guide is the essential guide to discovering French wines.

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QUALITY FACTORS

Tempranillo: undisputed queen of the Spanish viticultural landscape Ask the average consumer about Spanish wine, and probably two words come to mind: Rioja and Tempranillo. Both are intimately intertwined, but the Tempranillo grape is the most famous of all vitis vinifera varieties and the most widely planted red variety in Spain, giving diverse wines, pairing with a vast range of dishes and types of food. Put simply, Tempranillo is a great all-rounder of a grape.

There is a hypothesis that Tempranillo has some relationship with Burgundian Pinot Noir, and that it was brought to northern Spain by monks from the monasteries of Cîteaux and Cluny who were walking the Santiago de Compostella pilgrimage route. There is in fact some similarity between the growth cycle of the two varieties, even if each gives a very specific wine. Tempranillo was mentioned for the first time back in 1513. Alonso Herrera, in his General Agricultural Treaty mentions this variety under the name of Aragonés, which is how the grape was known in the Burgos region. He describes it as a “firm grape, with big bunches and thick skin.” Two and a half centuries later, in 1791, this same grape was named in Rioja, the heartland of Tempranillo, by Valcárcel in his book on General Agriculture. Research is currently underway to determine the true origins of this grape, and news is expected soon: watch this space.

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

AN ANCIENT VINE

Tempranillo: undisputed queen of the Spanish viticultural landscape

Like many other grapes, Tempranillo has different names: it is called Tempranillo in Rioja, Ull de Llebre in Catalonya, Tinta Fina in Ribera del Duero, Tinta de Toro in Toro, and Cencibel both in La Mancha and Valdepeñas. However, it is only recently that the scientific community has realized that in fact all these grapes were one and the same, further to morphological and DNA analysis. After Airén (250,000 hectares), Tempranillo is the most widely planted red variety in Spain with 226,000 hectares, followed by the Bobal grape (81,000 hectares), Grenache and Monastrell (Mourvèdre). It is without doubt the grape that best identifies Spain: after bullfighting, sunny beaches and paella, there is Tempranillo. It is one of Spain's finest vitis vinifera varieties.

A UNIQUE SPANISH CHARACTER Tempranillo has a few firm advantages: it buds relatively late and ripens early (temprano means early in Spanish), at least a couple of weeks before Grenache. This quality means that in Rioja and Navarra, Tempranillo can avoid even late frosts and give reasonable yields. However, it has one fault: it has only medium level acidity, which means that in some cases other grape varieties have to be called to the rescue: for instance, Grenache, Mazuelo (Carignan) and Graciano blends in Rioja. Due to the relatively short growth cycle, this vine tends to be more at ease with cool sites: it will ripen evenly anyhow. If temperatures are high, chances are the grape will loose its acidity and give a rather flabby, uninteresting wine. In fact, even though it is widely planted across red producing regions, Tempranillo acquires its prestige in the cooler central and northern parts of Spain. Another advantage of Tempranillo is that it marries very well with wood, American wood being the most popular type used in Rioja. Now, most domaines - not just in Rioja, but also in Ribera del Duero and La Mancha - looking to produce high quality cuvées would rather use French oak, because it gives the wine a more subtle character. With this grape variety, quality is sublimated by controlled yields: it is widely estimated that a yield of around 55 hl/ha will result in balanced, seductive wines.

WINE PROFILES Wines go from light, fruity, quite pale in colour and relatively low in alcohol (around 12,5% - 13%) to heavy, full-bodied and very high in alcohol (more than 15% is not uncommon). All styles can be found, depending on a series of factors, mainly climate and vinification techniques used, combined with yield. As mentioned before, acidity plays a key role with Tempranillo. Wherever acidity is preserved, the wine will be truly enjoyable. This is the case in Rioja Alta and Rioja Alavesa, where the climate is more influenced by the Atlantic and wines have a good balance between alcohol, tannins and acidity. Navarra is another region offering great reserve wines based on Tempranillo harvested in cool vineyards, like those located in the Valdizarbe

TEMPRANILLO IN MODERN TIMES

TEMPRANILLO BUDS RELATIVELY LATE AND RIPENS EARLY area. Heading east towards the Mediterranean, Tempranillobased wines have a different personality: they are more fullbodied and have a southern character. In the south and west, Ribera del Duero is an ideal spot for Tempranillo. Average altitudes of 700 - 800 metres along with extreme temperature variations of as much as 15 to 20 degrees Centigrade during the summer days give the wines a natural balance. With its extreme continental climate, Atlantic influence and arid character, Toro has everything it needs to produce high quality Tempranillo, giving deep, concentrated wines that can even be harsh if poorly vinified. Cigales also has a continental climate, hot summers, cold winters, and an Atlantic influence with strong thermal oscillations both during the day and throughout the year: it boasts interesting wines with tannins that need some time to soften in the bottle.

A GRAPE MADE FOR FOOD LOVERS A perfect meal with Tempranillo-based wines might start with a Cencibel from La Mancha, for instance a Casa Gualda joven (with 5% added Cabernet Sauvignon). It is a fresh, vibrant wine, with bramble and blackberry notes, that is well-matched with a typical Spanish cured ham, salami or any good quality dried sausage. Next, why not try a light young Rioja that has undergone carbonic maceration, such as the wonderful Mitarte maceración carbónica from Bodegas Mitarte. Slightly fizzy, it is a cheerful wine and a real pleasure that goes remarkably well with simply grilled tuna fish. For the next course, how about a roast lamb, paired with a Ribera del Duero, such as the Nogal 2005 from Pago de los Capellanes? To finish such a delightful meal, let yourself be seduced by a Toro crianza from Dominio del Bendito. Paired with an aged, cured sheep milk cheese from La Mancha, it is quite outstanding. Diego Bonnel GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

LIVE FROM SPAIN

A great Spanish gentleman's vineyard

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

Pazo San Mauro

Don Pelayo de la Mata, Marquis de Vargas, is chairman of one of the top distribution companies in the wine and spirits sector in Spain. Varma has been a family business since 1942 and is well known for its capacity to build strong respected brands in the Spanish market (Cutty Sark, Ron Barceló, Hendrick’s Gin and Jack Daniel's are good recent examples). Their group owns prestigious cellars in Rioja (Marqués de Vargas), in Ribera del Duero (Conde de San Cristóbal), and in Rias Baixas in Galicia (Pazo San Mauro).

LIVE FROM SPAIN

HOW

DID YOUR EXPERIENCE AS A WINE PRODUCER

START ? My family has a long wine-producing tradition. Four generations of Vargas have been growing their vineyards and producing wine, since my great grandfather, Felipe 8th Marquis of Vargas planted his first vines in 1845 in an estate of his own - Hacienda de Pradolagar in Rioja Alta, the heart of La Rioja. My grandfather and my father followed him.

WHAT

CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT YOUR DIFFERENT

WINERIES ? In our Marqués de Vargas Grupo Vinícola, we have three wineries. One is Marqués de Vargas in Rioja, another is Conde de San Cristóbal in Ribera del Duero, and then there is Pazo San Mauro in Galicia, in the Rias Baixas area. We launched our Marqués de Vargas winery in 1989, rolling out our first wine to the market in 1995. Our range only features reserva wines. The concept is very close to that of a Bordeaux château: we only use our own grapes, which ©ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

come from a 60 ha vineyard, from which we make 300,000 bottles. We have three different wines: Marqués de Vargas reserva, Reserva Privada and Hacienda de Prado Lagar.

WHAT

ABOUT THE

WINERY IN

RIBERA

CONDE DE SAN CRISTÓBAL DEL D UERO ?

Conde de San Cristóbal winery was started in 2000, when

DON PELAYO DE LA MATA IS CHAIRMAN OF ONE OF THE TOP DISTRIBUTION COMPANIES IN THE WINE AND SPIRITS SECTOR IN SPAIN

we bought 40 ha of the Pago de Valdestremero, located in one of the best areas of Ribera, near Peñafiel. Another 40 ha were planted and the first wine was launched in 2003.

trade channel. We decided to invest in Rias Baixas in

Total production is very similar to that of the Rioja winery,

Galicia as we were in love with the wines coming from the

around 300,000 bottles. Here we use 10% Cabernet

Albariño grape. Pazo San Mauro was bought in 2002. It

Sauvignon and 10% Merlot which are blended with the

currently produces 280,000 bottles and has two wines:

typical Tempranillo grape for our Conde de San Cristóbal

Pazo San Mauro, which is a traditional Albariño, and a top

brand, and a few experimental varieties like San Giovese,

cuvée called Sanamaro made with battonage, with lower

Touriga Nacional and others that are approved by the

yields, which comes from our best vineyards.

Consejo Regulador (the main official certifier body) that 2000 - 3000 bottles are made every year.

WHAT IS THE SPIRIT OF EACH OF THE WINERIES? HOW WOULD YOU SAY THEY DIFFER FROM EACH OTHER ?

WHERE

I would say Marqués de Vargas is the synonym of elegance

are blended in our Raíces (Roots) cuvée, of which only

DID THE IDEA OF INCLUDING A WHITE

WINE IN YOUR OFFER COME FROM ?

and finesse. Conde de San Cristóbal would be more like a

Well, we thought we needed a white wine to complete our

close friend you feel good with: easy to understand and to

offer and be able to cover a whole range of needs in the on-

drink. Pazo San Mauro is more versatile. Sanamaro is more

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

LIVE FROM SPAIN

a solid companion to haute cuisine; it matches well with white meats and seafood.

HOW

DO YOU SEE

SPANISH WINES

COMPETING IN

THE MARKET ? The reaction to declining consumption and sales in the domestic market has not been quick, and now many wineries are facing the challenge of exporting to other markets for the first time. Most wineries still need to build

CONDE DE SAN CRISTÓBAL, IN RIBERA DEL DUERO, IS ONE OF THE PRESTIGIOUS CELLARS OWNED BY VARMA IN SPAIN

a consistent export policy and target the right markets, which are the US, the UK, China, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and of course the main wine-drinking countries in Europe. In recent years there have been two factors that have not helped Spanish wines exports: the existence of high stock levels in the whole distribution channel, and the euro exchange rate, which was unfavourable to the wineries. Now, these two factors seem to be under control: the channel needs to be fuelled again, and the dollar/euro exchange rate seems to be closer than before.

THE COURSE OF YOUR CAREER , YOU MUST

H AV E

HAD

SOME

C OULD YOU TELL

MEMORABLE

MOMENTS.

US ABOUT ONE OR TWO THAT

HAVE PARTICULARLY MARKED YOU ? Yes, I have a couple of anecdotes to tell you. Last year, when Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles came to Spain to a public event, I met them at the Ritz in Madrid and they tasted the Marqués de Vargas, our wine from Rioja, and they really enjoyed it. And another one: last summer, we reached an agreement with Iberia, Spain's national airline. We were serving our wines in the business class and we prepared a video where I was interviewed by Custodio Zamarra, one of our top I had a meeting with an American contact who I had never met before, and this person said he already knew me which was thanks to our presence on Iberia. I did not know I was so famous! Diego Bonnel

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

sommeliers in Spain. A few weeks after the end of the campaign,

REGION

New Jersey wines: success in the making When we reached the vineyard, the rain that had been pouring throughout our entire trip stopped and gave way to a glowing rainbow. Louis greeted us with a large smile. “I ordered it for you,” he said. Well, he obviously didn't, but maybe this is a good metaphor for what is happening in New Jersey viticulture. EMMANUEL

LANVERSIN

ALMATHEA CELLARS TEAM: LOUIS CACCIOLO, JACKIE PANGIA AND CASEY ECONOMIDES GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

REGION

sk anyone about New Jersey wines and you’ll get a blank face for an answer. New Jersey is about the chemical industry, pollution, urban sprawl, the Devils Hockey team, but certainly not wine. That’s why we were surprised when a good friend told us: “You should go there, you’ll be surprised.” Indeed we were.

HISTORY

New Jersey's first vines were planted by colonists during the 18th century. The earliest testimony to winemaking can be found in 1767, when London’s Royal Society of the Arts recognized two New Jersey vintners for their success in producing the first bottles of quality wine. Charles Thomson and Edward Antill wrote in an essay that “the general climate of North America, the soil, the seasons, the serenity and dryness of the air (...) are fit for making the best and richest wines of every kind.” They recommended for New Jersey “the Chasselas blanc, the Malvois, the grey Frontiniac, the red Frontiniac, the

Charlie Tomasello

black Lisbon, the white Lisbon, the Chasselas noir” as the most suited vines to the climate. But transplanting vitis vinifera from Europe turned out to be a failure as the vines succumbed to phylloxera, black rot and mildew. Subsequently, American vines were planted and studied. The New Jersey vineyard expanded. The oldest winery still existing today, the Renault winery, was established in 1864. In 1876, the nickname “Garden State" started to be used for New Jersey, because farming was the major activity, but Prohibition (1919-1933) put a hold on the development of wineries in New Jersey (and indeed, elsewhere in the US). After the war, while California took up vine growing once again, New Jersey lagged behind because of laws limiting shipping and the number of farms. It was not until the early 20th century that things started again. A handful of vintners some of them with an heritage of several generations, others newcomers - realised that the terroir had huge potential.

TERROIR

TANKS AT SHARROTT WINERY 78

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SPRING 2012

To explain the benefits of the New Jersey terroir, Louis started with a joke. He pulled out two maps, one from New Jersey, one from Bordeaux. He twisted the French map and placed it over the New Jersey map: they matched! This coincidence is a hint, according to Louis, about New Jersey's potential. Situated along the Atlantic Ocean, it is divided into four different geological regions, of which three produce quality wine. The major region, Outer Coastal Plain AVA, is the area along the Jersey shore, comprising a thick bed of sediments deposited during the Cretaceous period. It is relatively flat and mostly covered by pineland. The other two - Central Delaware Valley AVA and Warren Hills AVA - are respectively in the foothills and the highlands of the Appalachian mountains.

New Jersey wines: success in the making

HE TWISTED THE FRENCH MAP AND PLACED IT OVER THE NEW JERSEY MAP: THEY MATCHED! Jim Quarella from Bellview winery

In the Outer Coastal Plains, the soil consists of gravel mounds with underlying layers of clay and sand. The vine roots can go deep into the lower layers without restrictions. This is the same type of soil as found in Bordeaux; the climate is midAtlantic. The ocean and the river Delaware contribute to smoothen the hardness of the continental climate from the Appalachians. The growing season on average has 190 to 220 freeze-free days per year. These similarities with Bordeaux are an inspiration for the vintners. In 2010 they organized a symposium entitled "Bordeaux - An Old World Terroir with Lessons for New Jersey" which concluded that Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot are the best varieties from which to craft fine and complex wines. We also found interesting wines in our tastings made from Chambourcin and Chardonnay. Wineries have worked with a large number of grape varieties and can now focus on those that are best suited - and forget those that do not thrive in this climate, such as Syrah.

In January 2012, a new bill was passed that allows small New Jersey wineries to keep their tasting rooms open as well as to ship their wine directly to consumers inside and outside the state, without going through the tier system which controls the USA wine distribution. This is a decisive move for the wine industry.

AMERICAN VITICULTURAL AREAS IN NEW JERSEY

WINERIES We visited some of the most significant wineries in the Outer Coastal Plain AVA. They are located among pineland and habitations. Most of them are former orchard farms transformed GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

PRUNING AT BELLVIEW WINERY

into vineyards, a few of which were created from scratch. They are all family operated. A number of farms specialise in grape growing; the most famous and significant of these is that of Larry Coia, a retired physician, who reconverted to agriculture. He sells his grapes to selected winemakers.

ALMATHEA CELLARS Louis is a non-conformist. On the wall of his cellar you can see a sign from the Green Dragon Tavern in Boston, where the revolutionaries gathered in 1761 to drink coffee (not tea) and made history: “It's free speech here. You can say banned things.” After a long career in the food industry, local boy Louis decided to settle on the farm he purchased in 1976 and to show the world the kind of wine it was possible to make in Atco NJ. His conviction and talent as a winemaker continue to pave the way for others.

BELLVIEW WINERY The name is probably a typo from the French bellevue, meaning “nice view.” The winery was founded in 1914 and Jim represents the fourth generation. Located on rather flat land, the property is 150 acres (around 60 hectares) large and dedicated to vine growing since 2003. This is effectively a grape variety conservatory, featuring 20 different cultivars. In 2006 they were big enough to produce wines from their own grapes. Part of their harvest is sold to other local vintners.

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

REGION

New Jersey wines: success in the making

OUR PICKS FROM OUTER COASTAL PLAIN COLOUR

SCORE

ESTATE

COLOUR

SCORE

ESTATE

■

90/100

Amalthea Cellars 2007

■

86/100

Amalthea Cellars 2009

■

90/100

Tomasello Winery 2007

■

86/100

Amalthea Cellars 2008

■

89/100

Renault Winery Estate Reserve 2009

■

86/100

Amalthea Cellars 2004

■

89/100

Amalthea Cellars 2008

■

86/100

Amalthea Cellars 2005

■

89/100

Amalthea Cellars 2005

■

86/100

Auburn Road vineyards 2007

■

89/100

Amalthea Cellars Limited Edition 2006

■

86/100

Auburn Road vineyards 2010

■

89/100

Tomasello Winery 2007

■

86/100

Bellview Winery 2010

■

89/100

Tomasello Winery 2007

■

86/100

Ventimiglia Vineyard 2010

■

89/100

Ventimiglia Vineyard 2009

■

85/100

Renault Winery Reserve 2009

■

88/100

Cape May Winery 2009

■

85/100 Heritage Vineyards Estate Reserve 2010

■

88/100

Cape May Winery 2008

■

85/100 Heritage Vineyards Estate Reserve 2009

■

88/100

Heritage Vineyards Estate 2010

■

85/100

Sharrott Winery 2010

■

88/100

Sharrott Winery 2010

■

85/100

Bellview Winery 2008

■

88/100

Amalthea Cellars 2008

■

85/100

Ventimiglia Vineyard 2009

■

88/100

Amalthea Cellars Reserve 2006

■

84/100

Sharrott Winery 2010

■

88/100

Bellview Winery 2009

■

84/100

Bellview Winery 2008

■

88/100

Tomasello Winery 2007

■

84/100

Ventimiglia Vineyard 2009

■

88/100

Ventimiglia Vineyard 2010

■

83/100 Heritage Vineyards Estate Reserve 2010

■

87/100

Unionville Vineyards 2010

■

83/100

Sharrott Winery 2010

■

87/100

Cape May Winery 2010

■

83/100

Sharrott Winery 2010

■

87/100

Cape May Winery 2010

■

82/100

Heritage Vineyards

■

87/100

Cape May Winery 2009

■

82/100

Bellview Winery 2008

■

87/100

Cape May Winery 2010

■

80/100

Renault Winery 2009

■

87/100 Heritage Vineyards Estate Reserve 2010

■

80/100

Auburn Road vineyards 2010

■

87/100

Sharrott Winery Barrel Reserve 2010

■

80/100

Auburn Road vineyards 2008

■

87/100

Amalthea Cellars 2007

■

78/100

Bellview Winery 2010

■

86/100

Sharrott Winery 2010

■

75/100

Amalthea Cellars 2008

■ red wine

■ white wine

■ fruit wine

SHARROTT WINERY Newcomers to the region, Larry Sharrott spent most of his professional life in corporate America, in the IT sector. A few years ago, he decided he had had enough, and became an entrepreneur, together with his son. One business plan later, they built a brand new cellar with modern equipment on top of a mound that dominates their vineyard. They are testimony to the rebirth of the vineyard.

TOMASELLO WINERY the newly released government license for winemaking in 1933, after Prohibition was repealed. Charlie, who runs the estate with his brother Jackie, explains that he was very determined

Grandfather Tomasello was one of the first people to be granted

Tomasello winery GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

REGION

to get the precious paper without delay. He headed to the administration office with his truck, despite heavy snowstorms on that day, and he is the proud possessor of National License number 3. Today, Tomasello produces an incredible variety of wines, including fruit wines, a tradition in the area.

RENAULT WINERY Renault, the oldest winery in the state, went through Prohibition adapting their production to the Volstead Act, namely producing wine-based tonics including peptone additives for stomach ailments that were sold in pharmacies to cure various diseases.The Milza Family has owned the estate

since the late 1970s; they invested in a golf resort as a solution the difficulties they faced shipping their wines, due to

regulatory constraints. Tourism and wine is a powerful alliance; the new bill giving authorisation to ship wine to customers will unleash their energy in winemaking and probably boost the quality of their wines.

RAINBOW OVER ALMATHEA CELLARS

A FEW YEARS AGO, LARRY SHARROTT BECAME AN ENTREPRENEUR, TOGETHER WITH HIS SON 82

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SPRING 2012

New Jersey wines: success in the making

LOUIS CARACCIOLO: “I CAME ON THE SCENE WITH AN UNLIT TORCH AND MY GRANDFATHER PASSED THE FLAME”

THE HERITAGE VINEYARDS & WINERY Bill and Penni Heritage started to produce wine on their land in 1999. Seeing the potential of the vineyard, they decided to convert the 150 acres (60 hectares) of their orchard.The fields have various expositions dominated by a hummock. Sean Cominos is their winemaker.

CONCLUSION We were really impressed by the wine tasting. This handful of determined vintners are clearly on the path to revealing new terroir, pioneer-fashion. Nowadays, pioneers are pushing the boundaries from within, thanks to their knowledge of their land, of their terroir. They work in depth, taking time to

ADDRESSES TOMASELLO WINERY 225 White Horse Pike Hammonton, New Jersey 08037 Tel. +1 (800) 666 9463 www.tomasellowinery.com AMALTHEA CELLARS 209 Vineyard Road Atco, NJ 08004 Tel. +1 856 768 8585 www.amaltheacellars.com RENAULT WINERY 72 N Bremen Ave Egg Harbor City, NJ 08215-3106 Tel. +1 (609) 965-2111 www.renaultwinery.com

HERITAGE VINEYARDS & WINERY 480 Mullica Hill Rd. Mullica Hill, NJ 08062 Tel. +1 856 589 4474 www.heritagewinenj.com

understand nature and the best way to reveal its fruits. Backed up by geography, geology and ampelography, they take immense risks to prove they are right and give the best to their clients. It takes time to discover which grape variety is best suited, which process will best enhance its characteristics. The vines' vigour has to be mastered, the yield kept under control, the best varieties have to be promoted. Other vineyards have already travelled this path. In France, Provence for example

SHARROTT WINERY 370 South Egg Harbor Road Blue Anchor, NJ 08037 Tel. +1 609 567 9463 www.sharrottwinery.com BELLVIEW WINERY 150 Atlantic Street Landisville, NJ 08326 Tel. +1 856-697-7172 www.bellviewwinery.com

had to recreate a whole wine culture after the crisis of the 1920s. With the sequels of Prohibition laws vanishing, we are prepared to bet that the region will grow in maturity and soon offer serious wines.

This spring, a blind tasting is being held pitting serious Napa Wines against others from Bordeaux. We will be there and keep you posted! Emmanuel de Lanversin GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

SAN FRANCISCO LIFE

Nopa: A San Francisco Gathering Place

Golden Gate Bridge and the San Francisco bay

ocated little more than an hour from California’s most famed wine regions of Napa, Sonoma and Santa Cruz, close to some of the United States’ best farmlands, open to the treasures of the Pacific Ocean, the Bay Area has provided more cylinders that fuelled the renaissance in American gastronomy than any other part of the country.

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SPRING 2012

Alice Waters’ restaurant Chez Panisse is located in Berkeley, across the bay from San Francisco: it started off the movement in the 1970s, pioneering the idea (novel in the US until the last decade) that distance between farm and plate should be as short as possible. She cultivated relationships with small-scale, organic farmers and

When the definitive history of American gastronomy is written, the San Francisco Bay area will surely occupy a central place.

SAN FRANCISCO LIFE

The wine list includes some excellent eaux-de-vie

Nopa arrived nearly four decades after Alice Waters served her first meal. It takes relationships to a higher level, not only engaging small suppliers but also facilitating contact between their customers and the suppliers themselves. Located in the scruffy Western Addition neighborhood of decidedly bourgeois San Francisco, Nopa celebrates the farmer, the vintner, the cheesemaker, as well as bakers, brewers, and a bevy of others responsible for what arrives on the table. Indeed, Nopa defines itself not so much as a restaurant but a “gathering place” - appropriate since it serves dinner far later than most other San Francisco restaurants (until 1am), and is now the depot for locals to collect organic produce on a weekly basis from one of Nopa’s farmer-purveyors. With all the good will, one might overlook the fact the food and drink at Nopa are excellent and the atmosphere on any given night, celebratory. Led by chef Laurence Jossell, the kitchen makes the most of its overwhelmingly organic produce with a changing menu of what might be called “nouveau California” dishes, a pastiche of sorts of various Mediterranean inspirations which are authentically though originally rendered from California’s decidedly Mediterranean environment. A recent menu featured shaved puntarelle (a type of Italian chicory), Page mandarins, watermelon radish and hazelnut; fried Monterey sardines and Meyer lemon aïoli as appetizers, braised rabbit legs, acorn squash, farro, Arrowhead cabbage and currants; Moroccan vegetable tagine, almonds and lemon yogurt; and pappardelle, nine hour bolognese, spinach and Mezzo Secco cheese as main courses. Fittingly, a side order of French fries is served with a harissa aioli rather than ketchup. And, as befits an American gathering place, there is a hamburger, made from grass-fed beef, far superior to most any other burger in the city.

Dining area at Nopa

winemakers that spread to restaurants throughout the Bay Area and beyond.

The wine list, which has been declared by New York Times’ wine critic Eric Asimov as the best in San Francisco, is exceptional. There are over 300 treasures from Europe and the United States, both classic and esoteric. One finds Comte Lafon Meursault along with Matthiasson’s unique Napa white, and Château Montrose with a Bobal from Spain’s Mancheula region. One of Nopa’s most unique offerings is its website, which allows guests past and future to learn about the restaurant’s purveyors through links and the restaurant’s blog. Wine connoisseurs are also afforded the rare gift of learning not only about the wineries represented, but their US importers as well. The concern for the wine lover is expressed by the explicit invitation for anyone interested in learning more about wine to contact Nopa’s sommelier directly. Fostering a sense of community, Nopa’s website also offers information about neighbourhood associations, artists, and local businesses. A gathering place, indeed. NOPA 560 Divisadero at Hayest Street - San Francisco - California - USA Tel. +1 415 864 8643 - www.nopasf.com GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

TRAVEL

www.hubrechtduijker.com

THE SURPRISING WINE COUNTRY OF

North Carolina Like a modern-day explorer, Hubrecht Duijker went to North Carolina on a quest to discover a new world of fine wines. In this American state, 87 new wineries have opened their doors in the last 11 years. But how do they rate in terms of quality and originality? TEXT AND PHOTOS: HUBRECHT DUIJKER

BILTMORE ESTATE The Biltmore Estate in Asheville, in the extreme south of North Carolina, was modelled after a French château. It attracts more than a million visitors every year, a quarter of whom also visit the estate’s winery, making it among America’s most visited wine cellar. It is North Carolina’s second-largest wine producer, with 250,000 cases a year, outrivalled only by the 335,000 cases produced by the Duplin Winery in the east, a mass producer of the sweet Muscadine. Only 15% of Biltmore’s grapes are grown on their 94 acres (38 hectares) of land, the rest are bought in, mostly from California. The expressive, full and fruity Biltmore Reserve Viognier is one of their best wines, and their Château Reserve and the slightly smoother Blanc de Noirs sparkling wines deserve the description of ‘perfect’. www.biltmore.com 86

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The surprising wine country of North Carolina

‘’

hat problems do we have growing grapevines? All of them!” exclaims Murphy Moore, the winemaker for Shelton Vineyards, one of North

Carolina’s top wineries. One of the fundamental problems is clear on the day of our visit - cloudy weather, which is not ideal for sun-loving grapes. Humidity, both in the soil and the air, is another problem as it increases the risk of mould. Then there is the Japanese beetle, which attacks grape leaves, and other pests such as grape-eating bees. Not to mention spring frosts. Winegrowing is a challenge here. As in the other southern states, one might expect to find hybrid and American grape varieties, which are more resistant. But in the Yadkin Valley river basin near Winston-Salem, the viticultural area where Shelton Vineyards is established, only high-quality French varieties and some German Riesling are grown. This winemaker’s success here is due to care, precision and skill in working around the limitations. “Organic cultivation is impossible here,” states Murphy. However, weeds are grown as a cover crop between the more than 100,000 vines in the 120-acre (around 48 hectares) vineyard in order to decrease humidity.

YADKIN VALLEY AVA Shelton Vineyards was started by two brothers, Charlie and Ed Shelton, successful businessmen who at 64 and 59 years old

YADKIN VALLEY’S LARGEST WINERY WAS FOUNDED BY THE RACING-CAR DRIVER RICHARD CHILDRESS

respectively decided to develop a vineyard on land they had acquired near Dobson in northwestern North Carolina. The first vines were planted 13 years ago, and today the annual production is between 22,000 and 26,000 cases. The gentle, verdant hills that dominate the Yadkin Valley are underlain by soil of

decomposed granite, sandstone and, principally, red clay. This last is responsible for the reddish-brown colour of the Yadkin River, which gives its name to the 1.4 million acre (over half a million hectares) region, of which 400 acres (around 160 hectares) are planted with vines. In 2003, the region became an official appellation - Yadkin Valley American Viticultural Area partly thanks to the efforts of the Shelton brothers.

PREMIER WINES A Sunday brunch at the Harvest Grill, the Shelton Vineyards restaurant, allowed us to try four wines (wine flight: 5 dollars), among which we enjoyed a pleasant full-bodied dry rosé mainly made from Cabernet Franc, and an astonishing medium-bodied fresh and spicy Sauvignon Blanc with hints of green fruit. In the popular Californian-style tasting room, Murphy Moore

SHELTON VINEYARDS - A BIT OF CALIFORNIA IN NORTH CAROLINA

serves some other notable wines, among them three juicy Chardonnays, two matured in oak and one in stainless steel. We

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TRAVEL

AT SHELTON VINEYARDS’ HARVEST GRILL YOU CAN TRY A FLIGHT OF FOUR DIFFERENT WINES FOR 5 DOLLARS

also tried a refreshing Blanc de Blancs also made from Chardonnay, which merrily froths into the glass, and a mild, fresh, pure Riesling that is one of their bestsellers. “I recently tried it with smoked trout, and it was fantastic!” our hostess confesses enthusiastically. Shelton Vineyards also makes red wines, the best of which was a tasty Cabernet Franc of ripe berries and controlled oak, and a smokey, concentrated Cabernet Sauvignon. To finish, we tried a blackberry-laden “Port” made mainly from Cabernet Franc.

A TOUCH OF TANNAT So it seems that western North Carolina is capable of producing superior wines. To confirm our first impressions, we continued our exploration, driving north to Mount Airy, a small town that was the birthplace of the actor and singer Andy Griffith (of The Andy Griffith Show and Matlock). In the quaint main street we visited the Old North State Winery, which started as a cooperative in 2002 and is now fully owned by Ben Webb. He grows 60% of the grapes for his wines and buys in the rest. More than half of

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WINEMAKER MURPHY MOORE WITH HER BESTSELLING SHELTON RIESLING

The surprising wine country of North Carolina

EX-TOBACCO FARMER NEIL SHORE CREATED SANDERS RIDGE VINEYARD, COMPLETE WITH TASTING ROOM AND RESTAURANT

reputation. We tried a smooth, fresh, apricoty Viognier, a lightly smokey Pinot Gris, and a spicy and fruity Cabernet Sauvignon. Other tobacco plantations in western North Carolina have also been converted to vineyards. Neil Shore, almost a neighbour of the Hobsons, started his 15-acre (six hectare) Sanders Ridge Vineyard after 40 years of tobacco farming. It has a chalet for wine tasting and a restauarant.

A RACY WINE Farther to the south, near Lexington (the ‘Barbecue Capital of the World’), Childress Vineyards makes an impression with its tasting room, built in the style of a Spanish bodega. On weekends, the parking area is full. This is the region’s biggest the 15,000 cases the winery produces is sweet Muscadine from the sandy eastern part of the state. Muscadine is a tough-skinned American variety that is well adapted to warm and humid climates. However, Ben Webb’s specialty is Tannat. This variety, found notably in southwest France’s Madiran AOC and in Uruguay, results in a fleshy wine with dark fruit aromas. The Old North State Winery barrel-aged 2007 Tannat is a surprising and enjoyable wine with controlled oak. Planting more Tannat is planned - a good decision, based on this wine.

FROM TOBACCO TO WINE Next we headed slowly south on a small rural road to arrive in drowsy Boonville, where RagApple Lassie Vineyards is established. This winery, selected as a Best New Winery in the USA finalist by the Wine Appreciation Guild of San Francisco, didn’t start as a hobby, but as a necessity. Its owner Frank Hobson previously grew tobacco on his family farm, but in the last decades, demand dropped so dramatically that the existence of his farm was at stake. So when his wife Lenna proposed replacing the tobacco with grapevines, Frank took up the guantlet. After a year’s preparation - ploughing chalk and nitogen into the soil, building a cellar based on the winning design of an architectural student, etc. - the first vines were planted. Today, the 35 acres (around 14 hectares) of vineyards contain

BEN WEBB, THE OWNER AND WINEMAKER AT THE OLD NORTH STATE WINERY, SPECIALISES IN TANNAT

15 different grape varieties, and the wines have gained a solid GILBERT & GAILLARD

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TRAVEL

RAFFALDINI VINEYARDS IN SWAN CREEK HAS A TUSCAN-STYLE WINERY AND TASTING ROOM winery, with an annual production of 32,000 cases. Most of the

learned to appreciate wines in California. We were impressed by

grapes for its wines are grown in its own 77-acre (31 hectare)

the delicious Childress Viognier and the pure Chardonnay

vineyards. The winery was started as a hobby by racing-car

Victory CuvĂŠe bubbly, which pairs perfectly with the exquisite

driver and NASCAR teamowner Richard Childress, who had

quiche in the panoramic Childress Bistro.

We also stopped at Westbend Vineyards, which was a pioneer in growing French grape varieties in this region. However, except for a reasonable Viognier, all the dry wines fell short of our expectations. This is perhaps not surprising, as their former winemaker, the talented Steve Shephard, has moved to RayLen Vineyards, a 40-acre (16 hectare) estate that exploits solar panels to produce some of their energy needs. The RayLen Brut (with a hint of Californian Pinot Meunier), the Barrel Chardonnay, the Viognier, the Cabernet Franc, the Shiraz and the bestselling Category 5 (Cabernet Sauvignon and four other varieties) all deserve a mention.

ENJOYING A LAZY NORTH CAROLINA SUNDAY AFTERNOON AT SHELTON VINEYARDS 90

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CHIANTI IN THE CAROLINAS To finish our trip, we drove to the Swan Creek region of the Yadkin Valley, an enclave that was officially recognised as its own

The surprising wine country of North Carolina

WHERE IT ALL STARTED IN YADKIN VALLEY: WESTBEND VINEYARDS American Viticultural Area in 2008. Known as the Chianti of the Carolinas, Swan Creek AVA has vineyards growing at a higher altitude on steeper slopes with distinct soils that contain schist,

THE WINERY OF RAGAPPLE LASSIE VINEYARDS (NAMED AFTER A MILK COW)

mica and other minerals. There are only five wineries in Swan Creek, among them Raffaldini Vineyards, with its Tuscan-style villa splendidly situated on a hill overlooking almost 44 acres of vineyards planted with mainly Italian varieties. The winery, founded by Jay Raffaldini and his sister Barbara as a retirement project, features a range of Italian-style wines, like a fresh Pinot Grigio, although they also buy in some non-Italian varieties. Among the wines that caught our attention on the tropical day we visited were a red berry, spicy Miscale di Vigna made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Malbec and Petite Syrah, and a smooth rosé frizzante, made from Petit Manseng, Traminette and Malbec, which gives it a soft pale colour. These fruity, refreshing, appealing wines are proof of the quality of what North Carolina is producing today. The good and surprising wines we discovered here were well worth the journey.

NORTH CAROLINA IN NUMBERS RAGAPPLE LASSIE VINEYARDS’ LENNA HOBSON WORKS FULL TIME AT THE WINERY

• POPULATION • WINERIES • VINEYARDS

OVER 8.5 MILLION 109 (IN 2011) 720 HECTARES (1,800 ACRES)

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT www.visitncwine.com

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FAMILY BUSINESS

www.torreswines.com

Miguel Torres: From Spain to the World One might be forgiven for taking the wines of Miguel Torres for granted. Founded in 1870 in the Penedès region of Spain, Torres now has wineries in three countries - Spain, Chile, and the United States - and produces some 65 labels from over a dozen appellations.

oday, Miguel Torres wines are found in 140 countries with sales passing € 200 million. Torres is Spain’s largest wine company. Casual drinkers as well as those who fancy themselves aficianados of small production, terroir-driven wines don’t often look beyond Torres’s most popular, inexpensive offerings, most notably the ubiquitous Sangre de Toro, with the small plastic bull tied to its neck. But for those who pay attention (and some important people really do), other Torres wines - single vineyard, and often small production - are among the finest produced in Spain, and arguably, the world.

Now 70 years old, Miguel Torres recognizes there are challenges to running a family business. Succession is one of them. When he was 40, he stepped away from the company for a year when his father, then in charge, hesitated to yield some control. Time away settled things, but Miguel is firm in his belief in the tremendous advantages to be found in family businesses, too. Citing the

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What is not always appreciated is that Torres is resolutely a family winery. Members of the Torres family are intimately involved in the operation of each winery, from those in Catalonia and other parts of Spain, to the Russian River Valley of California, to regions in Chile. The company is currently headed up by Miguel Agustín Torres Riera, representing the fourth generation of Torres family winemakers. His brother Juan Maria is the company’s vice president and founder of a division that specialises in the distribution of wines, spirits, and gourmet foods. Miguel’s sister Marimar is president of Marimar Estates in California’s Russian River Valley. Miguel’s daughter Mireia is a scientist and enologist who managed production of Torres wines in different regions of Spain, including Penedès, Ribera del Duero, Rioja, and Priorat and is now general manager of Torres-owned Jean Leon and Torres Priorat. Miguel’s son, also named Miguel, runs Torres operations in Chile.

MIGUEL AGUSTÍN TORRES RIERA REPRESENTS THE FOURTH GENERATION OF TORRES FAMILY WINEMAKERS

Miguel Torres: From Spain to the World

L-R: MARIMAR TORRES, ARNAU TORRES, JUAN MARÍA TORRES, WALTRAUD MACZASSEK, MIREIA TORRES-MACZASSEK AND MIGUEL A. TORRES. FOREGROUND: MIGUEL TORRES-MACZASSEK

current depressed economy, he asks, rhetorically, “Were there any family businesses that caused the crisis? No.” He continues that publicly-traded companies focus on the short term, for quarterly gains and bonuses: “Long term projects are very difficult…Would a [stock] company plant vineyards and start a winery in Priorat, knowing there wouldn’t be returns for another 20 years? No way.” Ironically, though focusing on the long term, he also notes that family companies have the nimbleness to make quick decisions. “If there is a need to do something, we can discuss, compromise, decide, and do it quickly.”

Until the early 1950’s, Torres wines were shipped mostly in bulk. Shifting to bottled wine allowed for the building of the Torres brand. No longer would Torres be producing “Chablis” or “Burgundy” (the company was certainly not the first or only in Spain to do this), but rather, distinctly Spanish wine. In case anyone doubted that fact, the release of Sangre de Toro in 1954, decorated with a small plastic bull hanging from its neck, certainly settled the issue. Indeed, it might be said that Torres created the export market for Spanish wine that went beyond sherry and an occasional Rioja.

While always a family firm, the Torres company had an international reach from the beginning. Capital for the winery came from oil company investments in Latin America. From the start, the company exported wine to Cuba, and in the early part of the 20th century, to the United States. The early goal was to be a reliable supplier of wine of good-enough quality to satisfy market needs, but perhaps not to gain the attention of the connoisseur, and Torres did so with aplomb. As Jay McIneney of the Wall Street Journal reported, soon after the German invasion of France in 1940, Miguel Torres’s father, Miguel Torres Carbó, contacted importers in New York to guarantee supplies of Spanish “Chablis” and “Burgundy” (respect for appellation rules didn’t exist outside of France then) as French wines became unavailable. Soon, Mr. Torres Carbó expanded his business by purchasing wines and grapes from other Penedès producers and exporting them to the U.S. and other countries.

Miguel Torres Carbó was great salesman, but his son Miguel Torres was a precocious visionary in the realm of vineyard and winemaking. His studies in France gave him an appreciation for sound vineyard practices, grape selection, sanitation and temperature controls in the winery. He was the first in Spain to introduce temperature-controlled fermentation tanks, and he grasped the concept of terroir. In 1965, aged 24, he convinced his father to purchase the Mas La Plana vineyard in Penedés and plant Cabernet Sauvignon, a grape that was practically nonexistent in Spain before. In 1979, the 1970 vintage of the resulting wine (Gran Coronas Mas La Plana) earned first prize in the Gault-Millau wine olympiad in Paris, beating premier and grand cru wines from Bordeaux. In the same year, Miguel Torres journeyed to the Americas in search of opportunities. He saw extraordinary potential in Chile GILBERT & GAILLARD

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©M.J. WICKHAM

FAMILY BUSINESS

MARIMAR TORRES AND DAUGHTER CRISTINA AT MARIMAR ESTATE (RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY, CALIFORNIA)

and purchased 100 hectares in the often-overlooked region of Curicó. Torres Chile has subsequently purchased more land in Curicó, as well as in Empredado, 180 kilometres southwest, an

Grace and Silver Heights Vineyards to make wine in China. The latest Torres China venture is the opening of over 60 Evergreen retail wine outlets by the end of 2013.

area whose steep slopes and slate soils closely resemble those in Catalonia’s esteemed Priorat region. In 1982, Torres acquired land in Sonoma, in California’s Russian River Valley, leading to the eventual creation of Marimar Estates, operated by Marimar Torres, Miguel’s sister. Vineyard plantings and the establishment of new wineries was not limited to the Americas. Vineyards were expanded and wineries opened in the Penedès, other parts of the Catalan region (including Priorat and Conca de Barberà) and Spain in general (including Rioja, Ribera de Duero, Toro, and Jumilla). The Torres family also established import and distribution companies in Sweden, India, and China, either alone or as joint ventures. Torres investments in China started in 1997 with the aim of importing and distributing the wines of Torres and others. The company now represents several important European winemakers (the Baron Philippe de Rothschild group has a 10% stake). A decade later, Torres collaborated with local producers

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Given the breadth of Torres’s international activities, it is indeed remarkable that the family still retains such control. Of course, they have representatives in the places they do business, but Miguel Torres lists a number of points which the family considers of prime importance: 1) Respecting the people who work for Torres, listening to their concerns and paying them fairly. Torres notes that while salaries were frozen during the crisis, which has hit Spain especially hard, he offered workers more flexible schedules. Additionally, while not required by Spanish law, Torres annually contributes 900,000 euros to pensions. 2) Being environmentally conscious, minimizing or eliminating the use of synthetic chemicals, using solar and wind energy, reducing the company’s carbon-footprint by 30% from 2008 levels by 2020, and other initiatives. Torres is actively enlisting other Spanish wineries to do the same.

Miguel Torres: From Spain to the World

THE TORRES VISITORS CENTER IN CHILE

VINEYARD AND VOLCANO VIEWS AT TORRES CHILE'S FUNDO CORDILLERA 3) Fair Trade 4) Doing charitable work through the Miguel Torres Foundation, building schools and orphanages in the US, Latin America, Spain, Africa, India, China and the Philippines, and providing disaster relief in various parts of the world. 5) Maintaining customer relations by visiting clients around the world at least once, and often several times, per year. 6) Research, development and innovation. 7) Staying close to consumers, especially through the food and wine experience. Torres has vinotecas serving tapas and Torres wines in Chile, China, and Spain. 8) Keeping the family united.

Though Miguel Torres doesn’t mention it specifically among his list of essentials, a vital element in the success of Torres’ success is its connection to the land. Beyond the green initiatives of which Torres is especially proud, the company has dedicated tremendous resources to the protection and cultivation of indigenous grape varieties, especially in Catalonia, where there is pressure for international-styled wines made from international grape varieties. It is ironic that a winery recognized a pioneer for Cabernet Sauvignon (Gewurztraminer, too) in the region would take up this challenge, but it certainly has, researching historic varieties such as Samsó, Cariñena/Mazuelo, Garró, Monastrell, and replanting them in opportune areas. “It’s a history we have a responsibility to protect,” says Sr. Torres. Like many other winemakers these days, he is greatly concerned about climate change. The company has been running controlled experiments about the effects of increased temperatures on its properties for the last few years and has scouted land in the Pyrénées currently too cool to ripen grapes properly as a contingency for the future. But time will tell. Now 70 years old, Miguel Torres is still actively involved in all aspects of the business, tasting, travelling, visiting, and planning for the future. Succession will soon be an issue. Fortunately, two of his three children, Mireia and Miguel Jr., both have the skills and experience to assume the leading position (the third, Ana, is a physician). There are also grandchildren, still too young to be involved, but among them will surely be someone to take Torres well past the middle of the century. Jamal Rayyis

MIGUEL TORRES 22, Villafranca del Penedès - 08720 Barcelona - Spain Tel. +34 93 817 7400 - www.torreswines.com GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

WINE GROWER PORTRAITS www.kleinconstantia.com • www.shannonwines.com • www.mullineuxwines.com

Cape harvest of good hope From historic Constantia to two relatively new winegrowing appellations, “cool” Elgin and “hot” Swartland (both literally and figuratively), Joanne Gibson provides a snapshot of three South African winegrowers as they finish the 2012 harvest. GIBSON

BY J OANNE

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Cape harvest of good hope

KLEIN CONSTANTIA: HISTORY IN THE MAKING Constantia near Cape Town is the cradle of South African wine, its vineyards planted by governor Simon van der Stel in 1685; its lusciously sweet wines enjoyed by Napoleon, Frederick the Great, King Louis Philippe and King George IV, and written about by Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock, Jane Austen, Charles Baudelaire and Charles Dickens. The Vin de Constance “brand” was famous, in fact, before Champagne or even the Médoc rose to prominence, which is why attempts have been made in recent years -successfully to recreate this lusciously sweet wine at Klein Constantia, a beautiful estate that once formed part of Van der Stel’s original ©ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Amsterdam-sized property. Klein Constantia has had several owners over the centuries, the Jooste family having most recently sold it to Czech-born Zdenek Bakala and UK-based Charles Harman. It has also now undergone

MATTHEW DAY (RIGHT) AND VITICULTURIST STIAAN CLOETE OF KLEIN CONSTANTIA

a change of winemaker, with Adam Mason’s move to Mulderbosch in December having left big shoes for former assistant winemaker Matthew Day to fill.

But Matt is confident: “After spending three years in the cellar with Adam, I know he and I have similar palates, and I know exactly what to do with the Vin de Constance, which is such a unique wine that it would have been difficult to bring in a new winemaker.” Most importantly, he and viticulturist Stiaan Cloete know their vineyards - planted on the undulating foothills sandwiched between the upmarket suburb of Constantia and the mountainous backbone of Table Mountain National Park. “Klein Constantia has its own climate,” he laughs. “Some days it rains here and nowhere else in Cape Town. And there are so many different slopes and aspects and soils that every block has to be kept separate throughout the entire winemaking process - these are the building blocks that give our wines complexity.”

For the Vin de Constance, the winegrowing team moved through

AT KLEIN CONSTANTIA, 2012 HAS BEEN EXCEPTIONALLY GOOD FOR WHITES

the Muscat de Frontignan blocks as many as eight times, picking only the ripest bunches along with shrivelled, concentrated raisins. For the Sauvignon Blanc, which is regarded as one of South Africa’s best examples, Matt reveals that the first block was harvested on 9 February and the last on 8 March. “It’s been a long ripening season, giving us more complex, tropical flavours than pyrazine-driven greenness.” GILBERT & GAILLARD

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WINE GROWER PORTRAITS

SHANNON VINEYARDS: CHILL FACTOR Until the dawn of democracy in South Africa, winegrowing was cooperative-controlled according to a quota system, with winegrowing restricted to “traditional” areas like Stellenbosch and Paarl. It was only after industry deregulation in the early 1990s that new cultivation zones could be developed - including the cool upland ward of Elgin. Situated on a plateau and surrounded by mountains, this pretty “basin” just inland from the Cape South Coast was traditionally

famous for apples and pears - and one of its well-established

KLEIN CONSTANTIA'S VINES LIE BETWEEN CONSTANTIA AND TABLE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK

Although it’s been a tough vintage for red wines, characterised by uneven ripening, Matt and Stiaan agree that 2012 has been exceptionally good for whites. “Both yields and quality have exceeded our expectations. Warm weather in October induced root growth, which helps with fertility as well as bunch and aroma development, and this was followed by an abnormally cool growing season. It was also unusually dry, but for Constantia, which is always too wet and cold, these dryer conditions were a positive factor, resulting in the proper phenolic ripeness of the grapes. Analysing what we have in tank so far, we are very happy.” Using micro-oxygenation for his Sauvignon Blanc and monitoring natural fermentation for an unexpectedly high yield of young Riesling, it appears Matt’s confidence knows no bounds - he even ©ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

reveals that he has planted some vines on his parents’ sheep farm near Johannesburg! It’s a confidence that hopefully bodes well for this historic estate as it enters a new era.

KLEIN CONSTANTIA Tel. +27 21 794 5188 www.kleinconstantia.com

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QUALIFIED MARINE BIOLOGIST JAMES DOWNES FIRST PLANTED VINES ON THE FARM IN 2000

Cape harvest of good hope

on par with if not better than the great 2009 vintage,” he predicts. “It was one of the coldest Elgin winters for many years, allowing the vines to go into proper dormancy. Winter rainfall is never a problem for Elgin, which has some of the highest winter rainfall figures, but there were also sufficient follow-up rains in spring to

retain soil moisture for the rest of the season.”

UNUSUAL GUARDS ON PATROL AT SHANNON VINEYARDS farms was Dunmanway, owned by the Downes family. They had always had an interest in wine, some of their forefathers having been wine merchants and owned a number of pubs in London. who first planted vines on the farm in 2000, first using Geographic Information System technology to identify 17 different soil types as well as slopes with south, southeast, east and northeast aspects, then doing two independent vineyard planting surveys to make sure the right grapes were planted in the right place on what was now called Shannon Vineyards.

But it was young James Downes, a qualified marine biologist,

HOPES ARE THAT 2012 WILL BE ON PAR WITH IF NOT BETTER THAN 2009

Needless to say, James quickly acquired a reputation for being one of the most meticulous growers around, his Merlot, Pinot

Although cool weather during flowering delayed fruit set, causing

Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Viognier bought by top

some unevenness, he says heat waves early in January helped

producers including Neil Ellis and Newton Johnson; his own

bring on veraison. “This narrowed up the unevenness from the

Mount Bullet Merlot almost overnight setting a benchmark for a

uneven flowering, and also stopped the vines growing, so not

variety that struggles in South Africa; his Rockview Ridge Pinot

much tipping and topping was required.” Apart from that early

Noir, Sanctuary Peak Sauvignon Blanc and Macushla Pinot Noir

spike in temperature, January, February and March were

Noble Late Harvest now also very highly regarded.

very dry yet cool: “We had 11 nights where night time temperatures of below 13˚C were celebrated. On 16 February it was 8.83˚C -

Chairman of the Elgin Valley Wine Guild (www.elginwine.co.za),

not something that many other wine regions in South Africa

James expects good things from this year’s harvest: “2012 will be

can boast!” GILBERT & GAILLARD

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WINE GROWER PORTRAITS

Although the “beautifully clean” Pinot Noir was harvested 12 days later than last year, he says the alcohols are going to be low-ish despite the extra hang-time - around 12.5 to 13%. Likewise, the Sauvignon Blanc has “riper flavours with great acid levels” while the Semillon is “looking beautiful” - leading James to describe 2012 as a “brilliant textbook year” even though in mid-March he was still crossing his fingers for the Viognier (“looking gorgeous”) and the Merlot (“should be picked last week in March”). His conclusion: “If all goes well, I advise everyone buy 2012 Elgin wines en primeur.”

SHANNON VINEYARDS Tel. +27 21 859 2491 www.shannonwines.com

MULLINEUX FAMILY WINES: GOLDEN HARVEST The gracious whitewashed gables and manicured green lawns of South Africa’s traditional wine areas are few and far between in the Swartland, a large and fairly rustic wine district northwest of ©ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Paarl that is suddenly producing some of South Africa’s most exciting wines. Traditionally this is wheat country, burnt golden beneath a relentless sun, the foothills of jagged mountain peaks dotted with bush vines that were planted decades ago with bulk wine and distillation in mind.

CHRIS AND ANDREA MULLINEUX MULLINEUX FAMILY WINES

In recent years, however, these once-neglected vineyards have attracted a new generation of winemakers, not only convinced

and in the cellar, apart from minimal amounts of sulphur,

that grapes from old, unirrigated vines tend to result in the most

nothing is added to, or removed from, our wines.”

intensely flavourful and complex of wines, but also determined to make wines in a more “natural” way.

It’s an approach that saw this new, small cellar receive accolades including 5 Star ratings for all three of its signature wines in the

The newcomers include Chris and Andrea Mullineux who got to know the Swartland while sourcing organically grown grapes for their previous employers. “It’s so easy to be organic in the Swartland that there’s almost no excuse not to be,” reckons

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2012 Platter’s Guide to South African Wines (which only top-scored 45 wines out of over 7,000 tasted). “The recognition is not only great for us, but also for the entire Swartland region, a place

Andrea, who grew up in San Francisco and studied Viticulture

we are passionate about,” was Andrea’s response. So what does

and Oenology at UC Davis. “We work with a select group

she expect from vintage 2012? “May and June 2011 were wet and

of growers who follow sustainable, reasoned farming practices,

cold, perfect post-harvest conditions for replenishing ground

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Cape harvest of good hope

SWARTLAND, A LARGE AND FAIRLY RUSTIC WINE DISTRICT, IS SUDDENLY PRODUCING SOME OF SOUTH AFRICA’S MOST EXCITING WINES

water and kicking the vines into dormancy. But then the rains

an early harvest flew out the window when December remained

stopped! August, September and October were dry and mild, so

cool. “Finally we had a heat wave in January that kicked off veraison,

we had early bud break and the vines just did not produce as

but it happened quite unevenly so most vineyards needed have

many clusters - I would say an average of 20-30% down. Luckily

some green harvesting done. The start of harvest was delayed by

there were sporadic big rains in spring, with perfect intervals so

only a week or so, but a relatively cool February stretched it

that the ground got a good soaking but there wasn’t much

out and we finished on 6 March - about three weeks later

disease pressure.

than normal.”

MULLINEUX FAMILY WINES Tel. +27 22 448 1183 www.mullineuxwines.com

Although she says Swartland winemakers will need to be careful in handling their fruit, because of the uneven ripening, she says she and Chris are very happy: “We feel the whites will have extra complexity and the alcohols on the reds should be lower than

Already confident about quality because the lower yields had

normal, mostly because we could take our time bringing in the

partially manifested as smaller berries, which usually means

grapes. There was no rush.” Which sounds just about perfect for

“awesome” fruit concentration, Andrea says her predictions for

an area as laidback as the Swartland. ■ GILBERT & GAILLARD

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WINE AND FOOD

www.cotesaintjacques.com

La Côte Saint Jacques… A family affair, from Marie to Jean-Michel Marie Lorain’s family guesthouse opened in 1945 in a large, bourgeois house in Joigny and was called La Côte Saint Jacques, after the hill located immediately behind; it is now only a distant memory. But it is one that her grandson, Jean-Michel, has not forgotten. Today, he is the acclaimed chef of a restaurant with which three generations of Lorains have scaled the heights of international gourmet cuisine.

n 1958, Michel (Marie’s son) took over the family business with his wife Jacqueline. The building of a nearby motorway forced them to refurbish the premises. The restaurant

became more luxurious and the menu much more sophisticated. In 1971, the first Michelin star rewarded the couple’s efforts

and five years later, Michelin upped the honours by adding another star. In 1983, after an initial stint in Joigny, Jean-Michel Lorain joined his father permanently as a chef after learning the ropes with Pierre and Jean Troisgros in Roanne, followed by a year’s training in the kitchens of the Taillevent restaurant in Paris alongside Claude Deligne, and 18 months with Fredy Girardet in Crissier, Switzerland. He gradually worked his way up the ranks of the team at La Côte Saint Jacques before imposing his own style and ideas.

In 1986, Michelin awarded a third star to La Côte Saint Jacques

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in recognition of the combined efforts of father and son. At 27, Jean-Michel became the youngest chef to achieve three Michelin stars and his ethos has remained unchanged: “To sell happiness Continued on page 104

A family affair, from Marie to Jean-Michel

RECIPE

Scallop galettes with Iberian ham, Jerusalem artichoke vichyssoise with a side salad of watercress dressed with butternut squash oil

SERVES 4 • Ingredients • 12 medium-sized scallops • 24 rectangular pieces of Iberian ham 1 cm/3.5 cm • 1 bunch of garden cress • 1 bunch of watercress • 20 dried butternut squash seeds • Butternut squash oil • Rice vinegar • Salt and pepper PREPARATION TIME 2 hours Cooking time for the scallops: roughly 2 min. VICHYSSOISE • 300 g of Jerusalem artichoke juice • 60 g of potatoes • 30 g of cream • Rind of the Iberian ham MASHED JERUSALEM ARTICHOKES • 200 g of Jerusalem artichokes • ¼ l of chicken stock • 20 g of fresh butter

Method • To make the vichyssoise: put the Jerusalem artichokes in the juice extractor to obtain 150g of juice. • Bake the potatoes then peel and sieve them to obtain 40g of flesh. • In a saucepan, mix the juice from the Jerusalem artichokes, the potato flesh and the cream. Bring to the boil then blend. • Add the strips of Iberian ham and leave to infuse for 30 min. Season, put through the strainer and set aside in the fridge. • Peel the remaining Jerusalem artichokes, chop them into large chunks and put them in a saucepan with the butter to cook, being careful not to brown. After 5 min., add the chicken stock, cook for around 15 min., drain then mash roughly with a fork. Leave to cool. • Cut the scallops in half thickness-wise. Put them in the fridge wrapped in a cloth. • Cut the slices of Iberian ham into rectangles the size indicated in the list of ingredients. • Wash and sort the watercress and cress.

Finishing stage • Check the seasoning of the vichyssoise and give it a tang by adding a little rice vinegar. • Warm the mashed Jerusalem artichokes and season with salt, pepper and rice vinegar. • Pan-fry the scallops in the butter, browning them on both sides. Drain them on a cloth. • Season the watercress and cress with a little salt, pepper, rice vinegar and butternut squash oil.

Presentation • Make a small ring with the mashed Jerusalem artichokes on a soup plate. Place 8 scallop slices on top with alternate pieces of Iberian ham. • Put the watercress and cress in the middle of the plate and the vichyssoise around the galette. Sprinkle a few drops of butternut squash oil over the vichyssoise. • Decorate with the butternut squash seeds. Serve with a Chablis Grand Cru for a local match, or with a famous white wine from the Côte de Beaune (Puligny-Montrachet, Meursault...). And for pleasure only: with a vintage champagne

93 /100

CHAMPAGNE Drappier Millésime Exception 2004 Light gold. Profound, complex nose blending stone fruits, dried fruits, pastries and patisserie-like notes. Wonderful fleshy, full entry. Well-structured yet melted and extremely persistent. A nicely-crafted Champagne that works equally well as an appetiser or with food.

FULL CONTACT DETAILS FOR THIS ESTATE CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE 114

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

103

WINE AND FOOD

such as “Chef of the Year” in 1993 and the outstanding score of

AT 27, JEAN-MICHEL LORAIN BECAME THE YOUNGEST CHEF TO ACHIEVE THREE MICHELIN STARS

19.5 out of 20 from Gault & Millau. It was at this time that he officially took over from his father. In 2000/2001, the dining area was transferred to the banks of the Yonne and six new guestrooms were created with a riverside view. The restaurant then lost one of its Michelin stars, only to retrieve it three years later. La Côte Saint Jacques thus returned to the exclusive circle of France’s most highly-acclaimed restaurants, which boasts just 26 members. Sylvain Patard

AN UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE Jean-Michel Lorain has always set the pace for cookery courses: he opened a dedicated school in 1996, spurred on by the success of the lessons he taught for years to the wives of his most loyal patrons.

and pleasure to my clients”. La Côte Saint Jacques is a family achievement and not just the success of one man at one point in time. It is a saga of which his daughters Marine and Alexandra, born in 1987 and 1990, may soon write the next chapter. Until

then, Jean-Michel's star-studded career continues with accolades

THE SCHOOL OFFERS THREE DIFFERENT MODULES

THE DINING AREA WAS TRANSFERRED TO THE BANKS OF THE YONNE AND SIX NEW GUESTROOMS WERE CREATED 104

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INTERACTIVE: providing hands-on experience, both in the kitchen and the restaurant, followed by a meal with the chef. DEMONSTRATION: in a custom-designed room, the chef explains the techniques that allow cooks to master a recipe. This module also includes a visit to discover the vineyards of Chablis. IMMERSION: students spend the entire sitting in the restaurant's kitchen, followed by lunch with the chef so that he can answer their questions.

La Côte Saint Jacques 14, faubourg de Paris - 89300 Joigny Tel. +33 (0)3 86 62 09 70 - www.cotesaintjacques.com

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WINE QUOTATIONS

The magic of Saint-Emilion Just what is it that makes this Right Bank appellation so very special?

However, on the Right Bank is the Saint-Emilion appellation that has both an older and more recent history than the Médoc, a slightly different structure to its wines, and which produces some of the finest wines in all of Bordeaux. The Romans first grew vines in Saint-Emilion, centuries before anyone cultivated grapes in the Médoc region. In fact, UNESCO has named Saint-Emilion a World Heritage site for being the oldest cultivated terroir in Bordeaux. Winemakers in Saint-Emilion have been exporting their product since the 12th century. However, in the first half of the 20th century the wines of Saint-Emilion were overshadowed by the wines of the Médoc that had been officially classified by the French government in 1855, under Napoleon III. During this period many winemakers in Saint-Emilion and the entire Right Bank had noticed that the Merlot grape was especially well suited to their terroir, and that it added a smoothness to the wine made from the dominant Cabertnet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc grapes. Many growers wanted to grow a higher percentage of Merlot grapes. In 1956 there was a frost that reduced the harvest which drove prices of the wine up. Finally, it was possible to invest in replanting Merlot grapes. This slightly changed the style of wines made on the Right Bank virtually overnight. Saint-Emilion wines were first classified in 1958 which brought the spotlight back onto the wines of this appellation (Saint-Emilion Grand Cru). The wines were classified into two categories: Premier Grand Cru Classé and Grand Cru Classé. The highest ranked châteaux in Saint-Emilion are Ausone and Cheval Blanc, which rank amongst the top château in all of Bordeaux.

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THE CURRENT PREMIER GRAND CRU CLASSÉ WINES ARE: PREMIERS GRANDS CRUS CLASSÉS A

hen we think of the greatest Bordeaux red wines we often conjure the region of the Médoc along the Left Bank of the Gironde River. After all, the Médoc holds the greatest number of highly ranked appellations (SaintEstèphe, Pauillac, Saint-Julien and Margaux) and châteaux (Château Lafite-Rothschild, Château Margaux, Château Latour, Château HautBrion) in the Bordeaux region.

Philippe Roux is a specialist in the niche market of rare vintages

Château Ausone Château Cheval Blanc

PREMIERS GRANDS CRUS CLASSÉS B Château Angélus Château Beau-Séjour Bécot Château Beauséjour (Duffau-Lagarrosse) Château Belair Château Canon Château Figeac Château La Gaffelière Château Magdelaine Château Pavie Château Pavie-Macquin Château Troplong-Mondot Château Trottevieille Clos Fourtet There are 68 current Grand Cru Classé wines.

Enjoy exploring the difference between Saint- Emilion wines and wines from across the Gironde River. Philippe Roux

The magic of Saint-Emilion

SAINT-EMILION YEAR

CHÂTEAU

APPELLATION

CURRENT RANKING

VOL

PRICE

VAT EXCL.

1904

CHEVAL BLANC

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

2997,49

1920

CADET BON

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

246,66

1925

MARZELLE (LA)

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

250,00

1925

PAVIE

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

413,88

1933

GAFFELIERE (LA) NAUDES

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

325,25

1938

CHEVAL BLANC

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

750,84

1938

CLOS FOURTET

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

372,07

1938

SAINT GEORGES

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

216,56

1941

CHEVAL BLANC

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

831,94

1942

CLOS FOURTET

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

333,61

1943

CORBIN MICHOTTE

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

Grand Cru Classé

0.75 l

213,21

1945

CHEVAL BLANC

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

1496,66

1945

GAUBERT

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

250,00

1945

HAUT PONTET

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

291,81

1947

HAUT TRIMOULET

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

207,36

1947

SOUTARD

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

Grand Cru Classé

0.75 l

249,16

1950

CHEVAL BLANC

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

647,99

1951

AUSONE

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

831,94

1952

BEAUSEJOUR

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

191,47

1952

CLOS LACROIX

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

129,60

1952

CLOS TRIMOULET

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

196,49

1952

CORBIN

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

Grand Cru Classé

0.75 l

146,32

1954

BEAUSEJOUR

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

300,17

1954

BELAIR

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

250,00

1954

CHEVAL BLANC

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

597,83

1955

CANON LA GAFFELIERE

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

Grand Cru Classé

0.75 l

200,67

1955

GAFFELIERE (LA) NAUDES

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

188,13

1955

HAUT SIMARD

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

118,73

1955

TRIMOULET

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

0.75 l

191,47

1958

DOMINIQUE (LA)

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

Grand Cru Classé

0.75 l

124,58

1958

PAVIE

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

275,08

1959

FIGEAC

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

275,08

1959

GAFFELIERE (LA) NAUDES

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé B

0.75 l

229,93

1961

CANON LA GAFFELIERE

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

Grand Cru Classé

0.75 l

250,00

1966

CHEVAL BLANC

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

267,56

1966

LARCIS DUCASSE

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

Grand Cru Classé

0.75 l

140,47

1967

AUSONE

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

191,47

1967

CAP DE MOURLIN

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

Grand Cru Classé

0.75 l

66,05

1967

CHEVAL BLANC

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

413,88

1969

AUSONE

Saint-Emilion Grand Cru

1er Grand Cru Classé A

0.75 l

249,16

Please contact us for further information: www.gilbertgaillard.com GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

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STARS & WINE

www.gilbertgaillard.com

Katherine Heigl: “I drink wine in moderation, and always in good company” Having put operating rooms definitively behind her since leaving the TV series Grey’s Anatomy, Katherine Heigl, ex-Dr Isobel Stevens, is continuing her unstoppable rise in film. After the success of the raunchy comedy Knocked Up, followed by 27 Dresses, the sexy star found herself a new niche: films that take a shot at everything without taking themselves too seriously. The latest in the line is One for the Money. While waiting for it to hit our screens, we asked its star to talk to us about wine. Now that you’re no longer playing doctors, like in Grey’s Anatomy, you seem to have taken on roles of overwhelmed mothers or, as in One for the Money, a young woman who is downright hyperactive… It’s true. My character, Stephanie Plum, is not the type to do anything by halves. She’s a fighter. I don’t know if this character created by Janet Evanovich is known in Europe. To my knowledge, her bestselling novels haven’t been translated into French, but I recommend that everyone read her adventures. They’re thrilling. I really like the cheeky, gutsy side of Stephanie. And it’s not every day that a person gets to play an unemployed woman who decides to become a bounty hunter to change her day-to-day situation!

In your opinion, would you have made a good bounty hunter in real life? I don’t think so! I’m too much of a coward and I’m not very patient. Plus I don’t think it would be compatible with wearing high heels - my guilty pleasure! I would kill my mother and father just to get another pair! Katherine Heigl

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Continued on page 110 SPRING 2012

STARS & WINE

Dustin Hoffmann: In the United States, you’re currently starring in Luck, a big-budget TV series produced by HBO. While we wait for this major drama set in the world of Californian horseracing to hit our screens overseas, we wondered how you, a film legend, found yourself in a TV show? I would really like to tell you that I love the smell of hay in horse stables or the atmosphere of paddocks, but it’s just not true. In fact, for years the director Michael Mann and I dreamed of doing something together. Since Straight Time, a film on which Michael was a screenwriter, we never stopped calling each other and trying to find a joint project, but none of the ones that we had in mind came off. Until the morning when Michael contacted me to announce, “I know that you probably don’t want to do television, but I’ve got a script that’s floored me!” So he sent it to me and I read it in one go - totally engrossed! For the first time, it didn’t depict horseracing with the usual clichés: beautiful women wearing flamboyant hats, freely flowing Champagne, rustic images of thoroughbreds trotting on the beach in slow motion. Luck is not glamorous! It shows the world of horseracing as it really is in the rough. A ruthless world, with specific codes, where you can’t get away with anything! The horseracing world is a very lucrative mini-society. It isn’t easy to get into, but it’s so very easy to be forced out after you’ve lost everything. Tell us a little about your character. You play Chester ‘Ace’ Bernstein, a gambler who has just served three years in prison. Yes! He’s a fellow to whom it would be better not to trust your savings. He would be capable of gambling them away completely in the next race. Chester is no longer allowed at the racecourse. The courts were very clear about this. He is persona non grata at the tracks. But he’s a mobster that lives, breathes

“I love Italian wine. I love Italy, period”

Dustin Hoffmann

and talks about nothing but horses! To avoid financial ruin and continue to feed his habit, he mandates Gus as his straw man, a puppet. Gus becomes his eyes and ears at the stud farms of California. You’ve said that you don’t own any horses and know nothing about them. Yet in Little Big Man you rode a horse, didn’t you? Yes, that was indeed me! But it depends on how you define ‘ride’. I probably have the shortest legs of any actor. So I’ll leave you to imagine how difficult it was for me to mount such an animal. It was like my legs stuck straight out on each side of the horse’s back, like a compass, rather than gripping its sides! When the production team had to hoist me onto my loyal steed, they had to use all

kinds of methods. These ranged from a simple stepladder to a complicated pulley system that lifted me from the ground and then lowered me into the saddle. It was so labour-intensive that of course, once I was in place, they wanted to optimise the scenes on horseback as much as possible! (Laughs) I spent hours on end on that horse. At the end of the day, when some kind soul deigned to help me down, my leg muscles were completely paralysed. They put me in a car and drove me home, where I took comfort in drinking a few glasses of Italian wine. I love Italian wine. I love Italy, period. When I’m there, I don’t drink only fine wines, I also like to take in the smell of history, of the land. It makes me feel good. Terrifically good. Continued on page 110

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109

STARS & WINE

Continued from page 108

Basically by tasting them! Of course, I made a lot of mistakes. I chose them off the shelves more or less randomly. But gradually, I got taken in less. Mostly I began to understand that wine is a personal thing and not to take what other people think too much into account. Certain people will really appreciate certain vintages, and others will experience them differently. It’s a question of taste. That said, when you go to a nice restaurant and the sommelier recommends a particular wine, there’s a good chance that you won’t be disappointed. It’s in the sommelier’s interest that you won’t be frustrated and leave with the open bottle under your arm! That doesn’t go down too well with the manager! (Laughs)

Frank Rousseau with Dustin Hoffmann

Katherine Heigl

Is it true that you’ve quit smoking? It’s the least you can do when you have a baby! To help me stop, I use a strange device that gives me a shot of nicotine. I inhale water vapour, but not tar or cancerous substances. So today you have a very healthy lifestyle? Not really. For that I would also need to detox from bacon! I’m a serious addict! I shoot up with fat! And not in homeopathic doses! And is wine another of your addictions? Come on, Katherine, spill the beans! I was wondering when you’d ask that. I thought it was strange that you hadn’t asked me that question as you’re French! Yes, I drink wine, but never between meals. For me, wine goes with food. That’s how I drink and appreciate it. At home, my parents didn’t drink much. When I got my own place, I started to buy furniture, kitchen things - I love cooking - and also a few bottles of wine, because I didn’t want my friends to say that I didn’t know how to entertain properly!

What advice would you give to someone who wants to know more about wine? Before reading lots of books and magazines, form your own opinion, even if you feel like you have to grope your way along blindly. Admittedly, you’ll spend more time and probably more money, but the upside is that you’ll train your palate. You’ll be able to look past the fancy labels and the power of merchandising. Sometimes you’ll stumble across outstanding vintages even though the bottle isn’t much to look at. And if you end up with a bad wine, you won’t make the same mistake twice! Your brain will remember it. And your wallet will too! So, as an ex-doctor in Grey’s Anatomy, you recommend drinking wine! Of course! But in moderation, and always in good company. That is, with a good meal and/or the love of your life! (Laughs) European filmgoers first discovered you in My Father the Hero, an American remake in which Gérard Depardieu played your father. Was it fun to make a film with the great Gérard? Ah, Gérard. He told me such good stories. He’s an amazing storyteller, you know. I remember that he didn’t understand a word I said to him, apart from when I spoke to him in French with the few basics I’d learned at school. At the time Gérard didn’t speak a word of English, but that didn’t stop him from learning his lines by heart in my language. OK, sometimes he had no idea what he was saying, but he did it with so much talent and conviction!

Who initiated you into wine? How did you learn to distinguish a good wine from a cheap one?

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Interview in Hollywood by Frank ROUSSEAU

Continued from page 109

Is that why you’ve accepted to be the ambassador (in an ad campaign) of the Le Marche region in Italy? Absolutely! The region is paradise on Earth, and my mission is to convince my fellow citizens to go and vacation there. I fell in love with the place the very first time that I went there. From a gastronomic and oenological point of view, Le Marche offers very tantalising prospects! The theme of the ad is the famous poem by Giacomo Leopardi ‘L’infinito’, which you recite against a background of superb images of the region. Would you be able to move to Italy tomorrow and become a winemaker? On paper, it’s an interesting idea, but in reality, you might as well ask me to climb Mount Vesuvius wearing flippers! (Laughs) It’s just impossible. I don’t think that growing grapes is necessarily very difficult. However, knowing how to exploit them, press them correctly, bottle the wine and ensure that what you produce is good quality is another ball game. It’s a real art. I don’t think you can become a winemaker just by waking up one morning and deciding, “Say, why don’t I take up winemaking?” You need to have a good sense of smell, the skill, the means and, above all, the time. All the winegrowers I’ve met have confirmed this. Even if you know what time you’ll wake up, you never know what time you’ll be going to bed! Interview in Los Angeles by Frank ROUSSEAU Member of the Motion Picture Association of America Member of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association

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FIRST EDITION ● 560 pages ● 2 600 wines presented ● 280 Bordeaux vintage 2010 ● ● Exhaustive presentation of the French appellations (AOCs) ● PUBLICATION DATE: December 2011

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COMPARED & CONTRASTED For a comprehensive overview of some great white wines, compare our tasting notes with those of our well-known American competitors.* *www.gilbertgaillard.com, *www.erobertparker.com and *www.winespectator.com

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WINE SCORES GILBERT & GAILLARD

Robert Parker

ALSACE Alsace Grand Cru Gewürztraminer A.C. Domaine Pierre Frick

95-100/100

an outstanding wine, when a great terroir

Wine Spectator

89/100

n/a

89/100

n/a

94/100

n/a

91/100

n/a

Eichberg - Vendanges Tardives 2008 Alsace Grand Cru Muscat A.C.

meets exceptional winemaking expertise

90-94/100 85-89/100

Kuentz-Bas Alsace

a superlative wine combining finesse,

Pfersigberg

complexity and remarkable winemaking

Cuvée Caroline 2008

a wine of extremely high standard, which

Vendange Tardive 50 cl Alsace Grand Cru Pinot Gris A.C.

we enjoyed for its typicity and character

80-84/100

Domaine Pierre Frick Vorbourg

a quality wine combining balance,

Vendanges Tardives 2008

structure and neatness for a

Alsace Grand Cru Riesling A.C.

pleasurable wine drinking experience

Domaine Pierre Frick Steinert 2009

75-79/100

a wine deemed acceptable

70-74/100

a wine with defects, unacceptable

BORDEAUX

65-69/100

a wine with major defects, inadmissible

Bordeaux A.C.

50-64/100

unacceptable wine, not worthy for sale

Château Loudenne BT 84-87

Note: wines scoring less than 75/100 are not included in our publications.

n/a = not available

112

BT = Barrel Tasting

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Vintage 2009 Château Thieuley Vintage2009

86/100

Château Clos Chaumont

86/100

n/a

Vintage 2010

BT 86-89

RECOMMENDED WINES Gilbert & Gaillard

Robert Parker

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Pessac-Léognan A.C. Château Larrivet Haut-Brion Château Le Sartre Domaine de Chevalier Château de Fieuzal Château Smith Haut-Lafitte Château Malartic-Lagravière Château Olivier Château Larrivet Haut-Brion Château Olivier Château Malartic-Lagravière Château Larrivet Haut-Brion Sauternes A.C. Château Doisy Védrines Château Myrat Château Rabaud-Promis Château d'Yquem Château Lamothe-Guignard

Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage

2009 2009 2010 2010 2010 2008 2010 2009 2009 2010 2010

88/100 88/100 99/100 97/100 95/100 94/100 93/100 93/100 91/100 91/100 90/100

92 n/a 92-94 92-94 92-95 92 90-92 92 90-92 95 90-92

90 BT 87-90 n/a n/a n/a 91 n/a n/a n/a n/a n/a

Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage

2010 2010 2010 2010 2010

98/100 94/100 99/100 97/100 96/100

91-93 91-93 91-93 96-98 89-91

92-95 (BT) n/a n/a n/a n/a

Château Château Château Château Château Château Château Château

Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage Vintage

2010 2007 2009 2010 2008 2008 2010 2010

94/100 94/100 93/100 93/100 92/100 92/100 92/100 92/100

93-95 91 n/a 92-94 88-90 89 92-94 91-93

n/a n/a 90 n/a n/a 86-89 (BT) n/a n/a

Vintage 2008

90/100

n/a

Vieilles Vignes 2009

Beauroy 2007 Vaillon 2009

88/100 90/100

88 92

n/a n/a

Vaudésir 2009 Les Clos 2009

89/100 95/100

88+ 93

n/a n/a

Valmur 2009

93/100

n/a

Vintage 2008

94/100

91-92

n/a

Sauvignon Blanc 2010

86/100

n/a

Vintage 2009

88/100

n/a

Les Anges Lots 2009

91/100

n/a

Coutet La Tour Blanche Filhot La Tour Blanche Filhot Lamothe Despujols de Malle Guiraud

Château Caillou

BURGUNDY Chablis A.C. Roland Lavantureux Chablis Premier Cru A.C. Isabelle et Denis Pommier Domaine Christian Moreau Père et Fils Chablis Grand Cru A.C. Domaine Christian Moreau Père et Fils Domaine Christian Moreau Père et Fils Domaine Christian Moreau Père et Fils

LOIRE VALLEY Quarts de Chaume A.C. Domaine des Baumard Touraine A.C. Domaine Baron Sancerre A.C. Daniel Chotard Domaine Pascal et Nicolas Reverdy

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

113

RECOMMENDED WINES Gilbert & Gaillard

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Savennières A.C. Domaine des Baumard

Clos du Papillon 2007

88/100

n/a

EDITOR IN CHIEF: Sylvain Patard

Domaine du Closel

Les Caillardières 2004

91/100

n/a

TASTING COMMITTEE: François Gilbert, Philippe Gaillard, Sylvain Patard - Diego Bonnel, Emmanuel de Lanversin, Olivier Delorme, Jamal Rayyis, James Turnbull and Delphine Veissière

RHONE VALLEY

REDACTION: Michèle Huyard

Châteauneuf-du-Pape A.C. Château de la Gardine

Vintage 2009

92/100

n/a

Cuvée Tradition 2010

89/100

n/a

Domaine Bosquet des Papes Côtes du Rhône-Villages Cairanne A.C. Domaine Alary

La Font d'Estévenas 2009

86/100

n/a

Eicelènci 2009

91/100

n/a

Domaine de Nalys

TRANSLATION: Elise Bradbury, Sharon Nagel ADVERTISING: Frédéric Comet +33 (0)6 27 58 47 06 fcomet@gilbertgaillard.com Annick Delauneux +33 (0)3 26 55 28 92 adelauneux@gilbertgaillard.com Nicolas Sanseigne +33 (0)6 46 86 80 01 nsanseigne@gilbertgaillard.com PRESS RELEASE: Grégoire Meridjen - Fisheye- +33 (0)6 22 94 53 10

LANGUEDOC-ROUSSILLON Saint-Chinian A.C.

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Cave Les Vins de Roquebrun

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Les Fiefs d'Aupenac 2010

90/100

n/a

DISTRIBUTOR IN FRANCE: MLP GILBERT & GAILLARD AMERICA Emmanuel de Lanversin: +1 908 277 3863 edelanversin@gilbertgaillard.com 174 Springfield Avenue, Summit, NJ, 07901, USA

PROVENCE Côtes de Provence A.C. Château Léoube

Vintage 2010

87/100

n/a

CONTACT DETAILS OF ESTATES FEATURED IN THIS ISSUE

PAGE 37

Champagne Pierre Moncuit

Champagne Michel Gonet

Château Le Sartre

+33 (0)3 26 57 52 65

+33 (0)3 26 57 50 56

+33 (0)5 56 64 08 78

contact@pierre-moncuit.fr www.pierre-moncuit.fr

chateaulesartre@wanadoo.fr www.lesartre.com

PAGE 39 Domaine de Ravanès

ravanes@wanadoo.fr

info@champagnegonet.com www.gonet.fr

Champagne Franck Bonville +33 (0)3 26 57 52 30

PAGE 103

contact@champagne-franck-

Champagne Drappier

bonville.com

+33 (0)3 25 27 40 15

www.champagne-franck-bonville.com

info@champagne-drappier.com

+33 (0)4 67 36 00 02

www.champagne-drappier.com Champagne Paul Berthelot +33 (0)3 26 55 23 83 champagneberthelotpaul@orange.fr

PAGE 40

www.champagne.berthelot-paul.com

+33 (0)4 75 34 09 97 earl-flacher@orange.fr

Domaine de Longueroche

Champagne Jacques Chaput

contact@rogerbertrand.fr

+33 (0)3 25 27 00 14

www.longueroche.com

contact@jacques-chaput.com www.jacques-chaput.com

PAGE 65 Champagne P. Lancelot-Royer

PAGE 45

+33 (0)4 68 41 48 26

Domaine Gilles Flacher

114

CONTRIBUTORS TO THIS ISSUE: Mark Andrew, Diego Bonnel, Nicolle Croft, Hubrecht Duijker, Joanne Gibson, Louise Hurren, Jamal Rayyis, Amanda Regan, Frank Rousseau, Philippe Roux, Delphine Veissière, Emmanuel de Lanversin

Union Vinicole des Coteaux de Bethon

PAGE 48 Domaine de l'Olivette

+33 (0)3 26 80 48 19

+33 (0)4 94 98 58 85

+33 (0)3 26 57 51 41

champagne.g.gruetetfils@wanadoo.fr

contact@domaine-olivette.com

champagne.lancelot.royer@cder.fr

www.champagne-gruetetfils.fr

www.domaine-olivette.com

GILBERT & GAILLARD

SPRING 2012

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